Luna Negra
by CJzilla
Summary: An old friend of Rodolfo's comes to Miracle City flaunting newly aquired superpowers. Within hours of her arrival, something is savagely attacking the supervillans and sucking out their... essence. What of Grandpapi? Will the heroes be next?
1. Monsters for Lunch

Konnichi wa New York! Konban wa London! Ohyaho Tokyo! CJzilla here with her newest creation: "Luna Negra" a fiction about El Tigre!

Synopsis: An old friend of Rodofo's returns to Miracle City and she is flaunting newly aquired superpowers. Within hours of her arrival something is savagely attacking all of Miracle City's supervillains and... draining their essence. Are the heroes next? What of Grandpapi? Can Manny stop this mysterious danger before it strikes someone he loves?

As I tread all over this city, alls CJzilla has to roar is this: R&R! Love on me, hate on me... I don't care.

AN: CJzilla owns nothing belonging to El Tigre. I do own my "OC", your reviews and sanity!

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**Luna Negra**

Chapter 1

_Monsters for Lunch_

Ah, Miracle City during the noontime lunch rush. A welcomed break from work and scholastic activities, that half an hour or forty-five minuets of freedom could be like a glass of cold water in the middle of a sweltering desert. Though, there isn't much of a line between school food and prison food. Government food feeds all incarcerated persons, so what the convicts in the local Miracle City Prison were enjoying, the children of Miracle City Leone Middle School were trying to choke down.

Manny Rivera, an ordinary thirteen-year-old boy with an extraordinary alias, poked at the mass of orange slime that the school system deemed: "Especiál Carne Empanadas". The boy's mouth creased in disgust as he watched how the blob of government food quivered around his plastic fork. THIS looked _nothing_ like empanadas let alone meat! Looking up Manny hoped his best friend, Frida Suárez, had brought a lunch from home so he could at least steal a nibble to hold him over until he got out of school and to some REAL food. To his horror, the thirteen-year-old rocker with short blue hair was wolfing down the "Especiál Carne Empanadas".

"Frida! You're not supposed to eat this! That's totally _gross_!" Manny dropped his fork and flinched. Frida Suárez looked up and blinked.

Swallowing her mouthful of the cafeteria's special, the girl nodded.

"Don't tell me what I'm doing!" Frida scooped up another forkful of the "food" before she made a face. "If I don't eat _something_, I'll never make it until the bell rings!"

The young teen quivered before shoving the "Especiál Carne Empanadas" into her mouth. She took three swift chews of the stuff before she swallowed. Shuttering at the taste, texture and smell, Frida fought off a gag. Taking another forkful, her eyes watered even before she put the school food in her mouth.

"You're right, dude. You're not supposed to eat this." Holding her nose, she plunged the food into her face.

Manny didn't know what was more disgusting; watching Frida eat the food or watching Frida swallow. Pushing his plastic lunch tray away from him, the thirteen-year-old crossed his arms over his chest.

"This is gross. Why couldn't a monster made out of Horchata ice cream trash the city nearby? I'm _STARVIN'_!" With that overly dramatic outburst, Manny plopped his head onto the lunch-table and gave a loud death rattle.

Frida cringed again as she slammed her fist on the table, choking down the food. She too, had enough.

"Yeah, this is lame." The blue-haired girl grabbed her lunch tray and threw it behind her. The "Especiál Carne Empanadas" smacked a kid on the back of his head, to which he preceded to ralf his guts out.

Both Manny and Frida had their heads on their table, wishing for some decent food.

"You know what I want?" Manny's mind began to wander to delicious things and that made his mouth water.

"To take over the school system and make them teach us _pyrotechnics and rock and roll and order some_ _EDIBLE FOOD_?!" Frida cheered, hands in the air. Manny cocked a brow.

"Uh, no." He returned, half-closing his brown eyes.

Frida relaxed and joined her best friend by letting her head rest on the table.

"I want a HUGE chicken burrito smothered in my mom's red salsa." Manny could visualize his desire. "Then a bucket full of guacamole with a forest of tortilla chips! And for dessert, fried ice cream with cinnamon and a big jug of watermelon Horchata!"

Frida and Manny drooled. But then an unusual roar broke through the lunch hour. Peeling their drool-covered faces off of the lunch table, both thirteen-year-olds looked up. Towering high above the cityscape was a large monster eyeball, complete with gooey tears and long tentacles.

"Aye, yiy, yiy." Manny groaned angrily as his stomach rumbled and he stood from his chair. "Fighting a giant eyeball on an empty stomach is gonna _KILL_ me."

Frida scoffed.

"Don't be so melodramatic. You're at school as in: "The No Fight Zone". The vice principle won't let you off of school grounds." She propped her cheek on her hand. "Besides, some other hero will get that; maybe even your dad."

Agreeing but still not happy with his empty stomach or the fact that he couldn't leave school grounds without parental consent, Manny plopped back down on his chair. Hoping the growling of his stomach would somehow drown out the roar of the rampaging eyeball, Rivera simply sighed. But the monster's moaning came closer and closer. Then Manny heard Frida gasp. Looking up at his friend, he saw her dark blue eyes craned upwards and her mouth practically on the lunch table.

"Holy buckets of Tres Leches!" Frida peeped. Manny cocked an eyebrow and lifted his head off of the table, a question about to pop out of his mouth.

But then something warm and slimy touched the back of his head. Squirming, the boy leapt from his seat and clear over the table. Now Manny saw why Frida looked like someone dropped an electric eel in her pants. The monster, slimy eyeball creature was halfway inside the middle school's cafeteria area.

"Eye… Caramba…" Manny peeped. The huge eyeball then bellowed an ear-shattering roar before slamming a tentacle over the school's clock tower.

Children fled in all directions, dodging bricks as debris from the decimated clock tower showered down on the cafeteria. Frida had taken cover under a lunch table as Manny just stared at the huge eye-based monster.

"Manny! Do I HAVE to tell you to use your El Tigre powers?!" The blue-haired girl quivered. The thirteen-year-old boy gave a wily smile.

"No." Manny returned like she was stupid as he spun his belt buckle. In a wave of mystic green incandescence, a tiger yowl was heard. "EL TIGRE!"

Manny Rivera suddenly became the super-powered El Tigre, a tiger-based super powerful, super brave, super macho superhero! Slashing the air with his iron claws, El Tigre smirked.

"Oye Ojo!" The teen superhero blasted at the eyeball monster, grabbing its attention. "Don't you know it's rude to stare?!"

With that El Tigre jumped into the air. Letting out another tiger roar, the boy superhero extended his claws and gave the monster a slash. Flinching under his sharp claws, the slimy eyeball brought a long tentacle from wrecking buildings and gave the thirteen-year-old super a swat. El Tigre grunted on impact as the monster decked him. Skidding across the cafeteria floor, he came to a rude stop inside the kitchen of the cafeteria.

There was a silence as El Tigre gathered his thoughts and a few ingredients. Busting back out into the open, the teen superhero had his arms full of various spices and chilies.

"Prepare for a black eye, you gooey mess!" El Tigre cheered. There was an awkward silence that cut through the battle.

""Gooey mess"? WHERE in the _world_ did that come from?! LAME!" Frida scolded from under her safety table.

Manny/El Tigre rolled his eyes.

"Frida! I'm fighting evil here!" He returned. The young superhero regained his swagger and jumped into the air. "Eat this!"

And he spun. Chili powders of various colors, pepper flakes, grapefruit juice and mustard powder spewed from jars El Tigre held in his arms. The spices hit the eyeball monster dead on. At first the monster blinked its giant eye before the chili set in. Screaming loudly, the eyeball monster quivered at the pain before withdrawing its tentacles and stumbling away from the school.

"HA! That's cookin' El Tigre-style!" El Tigre called after the monster. Emboldened by his cheering peers, Manny set a foot after the monster before he was stopped.

"_Rivera_!" It was the vice principle. Manny froze but sighed.

Heeled shoes not unlike those of a dictator sounded on the floor of the cafeteria. Manny knew what was coming next.

"Rivera!" Vice principle Chacal growled, the child's name coming out of his mouth like acid. "Chu know de rules! No super-powered shenanigans within school grounds! Now, knock it off or chu will be expelled!"

Manny made a face before spinning his El Tigre belt buckle again. In a green flash, El Tigre became his true form, Manny Rivera.

"There." The thirteen-year-old boy huffed, folding his arms.

"Very good. Now, de next time chu see a monster trashing de city, let a _real_ superhero deal wich it." With those words the vice principle turned on his heel and walked away.

Manny growled and made fists with his hands. If he was any less a superhero, he'd string that no-good vice principle by his underwear so fast, he wouldn't know what hit him. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Relax Manny; Chacal's _always_ been out to get you. You're a totally real superhero-" It was Frida but Manny swatted away her hand.

The thirteen-year-old growled as he stood rigid, watching the eyeball monster flee into the distant city. Manny Rivera _was_ a true hero! He saved this city's butt more times than one and that fun-sucker Chacal had the gall to call him down! Just for that, Manny would toilet paper Chacal's house tonight. Then Frida walked in front of her friend.

"Just let it go dude and let's see if we can't get something real to eat." She sympathized putting her hand back on Manny's shoulder.

Sighing but relenting, the thirteen-year-old boy nodded. Both Manny and Frida walked through the wrecked cafeteria yard, on their way to the candy vending machines.

Three o'clock couldn't have come sooner. Running like crazy people, children fled in all directions as fast as they could, getting away from the educational prison that society somehow accepted. Only Manny Rivera and Frida Suárez left the Leone Middle School slowly, a black cloud still hanging over Manny's head. Frida knew her best friend was troubled and so she stuck by his side, no matter how much it killed her to walk slowly!

"What a jip!" The thirteen-year-old boy grumbled. Frida knew a rant was soon to follow. "Chacal had no right to lower my hero status! NO RIGHT! I've saved this city a billion times!"

At that Frida cleared her throat.

"Yeah, sure; I'll give you that. But Manny, half of those billion times, YOU caused the trouble that nearly destroyed Miracle City." It was the honest truth. Manny spun to his best friend, nostrils flared and anger clearly on his face.

"A little support here!" He barked, hands in the air.

Frida gave an uneasy smile before she shrugged.

"Aw. Don't let Chacal get to you, Manny. He's always gonna be one of those people who don't like you." Then she giggled. "You got lots of those!"

Manny puffed out a sigh as he slouched.

"I just wish there was a way to show that nasty vice principle and everyone else that I AM a hero! I mean, something so convincing that they'll be talking about it for years to come!" He expressed before falling silent again.

The blue-haired girl cringed at the thought.

"Manny? You _always_ want to be identified as a goodie-goodie "eat your nutrition" do-gooder?" Frida questioned. "I mean, kinda like your dad."

At her thoughtless comment, Frida slapped her hands over her mouth. She didn't mean it the way it came out. Thankfully, Manny didn't take her comment the way it sounded.

"No, not like _that_. I _do_ want to be seen as a hero though." The thirteen-year-old boy returned. "And _that'll_ give Chacal something to stick into his _grande_ nose!"

That was only reasonable. Frida shrugged.

"We can dream can't we?" The girl forced a smile. "But seriously dude, be careful what you wish for 'cause you just might get it!"

And then Frida gave a rowdy laugh. Manny rolled his eyes. As he did, his green eyes saw something flying right toward them; it was huge and screaming right at the two teens! Manny could tell it was a monster but it wasn't attacking; it looked like it was reeling from a blow.

"Whoa!" The young teen superhero choked out as he nearly stumbled in his tracks. Frida walked into her best friend but when she saw how he was watching to the sky, she looked up too.

Frida's blue eyes widened.

"Holy fire in the sky!" The girl's mouth hit the sidewalk. The monster flew out of the sky and struck the road.

Pieces of asphalt spewed in all directions as the monster came to a long stop. A wave of debris rose high into the air. Frida heard Manny spin his belt buckle and then she felt him grab her hand.

"Hang on Frida!" Manny called to her. The girl grabbed onto her friend's shirt.

El Tigre bolted down the sidewalk, dodging rubble as it rained down. Zipping to an alley, he hugged the wall and used his body to block any debris from hitting Frida. As the monster's body dug into the roadway, skidding past the alley way before coming to a smoldering stop, rubble showered the nearby buildings. Finally a plume of dust covered the street, then everything fell silent.

El Tigre opened one of his eyes when everything was silent. He stood.

"Whoa!" He heard Frida gasp. Turning to his friend, El Tigre found her brown with dirt.

Frida shook her head and a blanket of dirt fell off of her. El Tigre did the same.

"Dude!" Frida awed before she zipped to the end of the alleyway, peeking around the corner toward the monster. "What the heck? The forecast for today was sunny skies, not raining monsters!"

El Tigre shrugged.

"This is Miracle City, Frida; stuff that shouldn't fall from the sky usually does." He walked up to his friend. Frida gave an evil smile.

"Like our super awesome molé and fudge pranks? Cool, right?!" She chuckled mischievously. El Tigre grinned wickedly and nodded. "I could go for a monster bashing right now! Let's get a front row seat to the beating!"

"Awesome!" El Tigre cheered, grabbing Frida by the hand and racing down the totaled street.

The two teens bolted to the crash site. As they neared, the air was still covered in dust from the monster crashing into the ground and the path of the monster was clearly smashed into the roadway. Manny and Frida could see the end of the creature's trail but a plume of smoldering asphalt was blocking their view. Running to the crater, the two mischievous teens peered into the hole. As they did, they nearly knocked heads with a dizzy monster, peeling itself from the crater. It was the same eyeball monster that Manny fought earlier today.

Gooey tears rushed from the slimy monster's body as it stumbled around, clearly nearly knocked out. As reality set back in, the eyeball creature roared.

Frida gave a surprised shriek as El Tigre grappled one of his hands to the nearest building. Grabbing his friend, Manny and Frida were propelled upwards and safety.

"Whoa! It's the same gross eyeball that you fought at school!" Frida commented as they landed on a rooftop. Manny pounded his fist into his hand.

"Well, I'm gonna teach that nasty teary eyeball a lesson it'll never for-!" Then someone tackled the eyeball monster, and it wasn't El Tigre.

Someone in a costume that looked like a black blanket-cloak flattened the eyeball monster and cranked its tentacles to the side. The eyeball creature roared in anger before it flexed it tentacles. The superhero lost grip on the monster. When the giant mutant eyeball felt the hero's grip loosen, it gave the super a stroke across the body with one of its huge, slimy tentacles. The superhero went reeling and the eyeball monster pounced after the hero. Landing on the wrecked street, the superhero saw the monster come rushing. The eyeball creature slapped four of its six tentacles on the hero's wrists and ankles, immobilizing the super. The monster growled its animosity as its pupil began to glow blood red. A hum of energy cut through the deathly silence.

"Manny! Get your carcass down there! That hero's gonna get creamed!" Frida rushed, hands over her mouth. El Tigre was way ahead of her.

Leaping down to the street, El Tigre swiped at the monster's tentacles holding down the hero. Screaming in pain, the eyeball reared and, as it did, a huge red laser misfired from its huge pupil and cut through the sky. Manny landed in front of the hero and helped peel the twitching, dismembered tentacles from around him. The cloaked hero, still on his back caught the eyeball monster lash out with its two remaining tentacles. Taking a handful of the teen superhero's shirt, both heroes tumbled out of the way as the monster slammed its appendages into the roadway.

Manny and the hero hopped to their feet.

"Gracias niño." The hero's voice was feminine and husky. Manny stared at the hero like _SHE_ just grew another head.

He heard a light giggle out of the female hero though she was in a costume that covered her face. Without missing a beat, the female superhero pounced back onto the eyeball. El Tigre snapped out of his surprise and was right next to the woman. Both heroes slashed, punched and/or pummeled the sorry eyeball monster. Finally, the creature fell with a loud, pained groan. Closing its giant eye, the eyeball monster lie quiet.

"Woo!" Manny cheered, hands in the air before he zipped over to the monster and verbally harassed it. "And don't you _ever_ forget it!"

The monster groaned again and the female hero laughed. El Tigre spun around to the new super he'd never seen before.

"Extraordinario young one." She voiced as she began to change shape in front of Manny. Her black cloak moved from her face like gooey oil.

Her morphing cloak formed into a long black dress with a hip-high slit on her right leg. The woman had an oval face, light skin, big green eyes and plump lips that held an impressed smirk at the teen hero.

"Tell me, who are you?" She asked approaching the thirteen-year-old boy. Manny blinked at her.

"M-My name is Manny Rivera." Then he face-palmed. "I mean El Tigre!"

Again he slapped his forehead. Manny just spilled his secret identity to this woman. Great!

"A pleasure El Tigre." The super-heroine's voice cut through his thoughts. Manny peeked at the woman and she smiled. "I am La Cortina. I finally get to see another superhero; it's been weeks."

La Cortina? Meaning, "the curtain"? The thought must have surfaced as a funny look on his face because Manny heard the heroine giggle as she neared.

"And just so we're even, Manny, my name is Alejandra. You have some super macho moves for a young one." La Cortina placed a hand on her hip. Manny froze.

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R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK!


	2. Friend or Not

Ohayho Tokyo! Konban wa New York! Konnichi wa London! CJzilla here with an update! In this chapter you'll find out what links La Cortina and White Pantera together.

As I trash this city alls CJzilla has to roar is this: R&R! Love on me, hate on me... I don't care...

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_Chapter 2_

Friend or Not?

"Uh… thanks." El Tigre gave a coy smile as he kicked an invisible pebble with his boot. "You weren't so bad yourself."

La Cortina laughed.

"Not bad for a first time hero, huh?" The woman snapped her fingers. Manny blinked at her.

"First time?" El Tigre repeated. "You mean you've never done this before?"

She shook her head.

"I've just received my superpowers; about two weeks ago, actually." La Cortina explained. Then she grinned at the boy. "You say you are a Rivera?"

Actually, Manny sorta blabbed it. He gave a guilty smile.

"Yeah. Why?" The thirteen-year-old cocked a brown eyebrow. The woman's eyes fell to the ground as she chuckled.

"I know of a superhero with the name Rodolfo Rivera. You know of him El Tigre?" La Cortina brought her green eyes to his as she cocked her head. Manny thought this over for a long second.

How many times did he hear of some stranger being a friend of his father's and then turned out to be vengeful crazy-heads bent on creaming the whole Rivera family? El Tigre cocked a suspicious brow at the woman as he folded his arms.

"If I say yes, will you wreak some sort of embittered revenge on him?" He point-blankly asked. La Cortina's eyebrows shot up.

"What? No! I want to know if White Pantera is still alive." She returned, slightly shocked at the boy's pointed question. Manny was still unconvinced.

"If I say yes, will you go and kill him yourself?" The thirteen-year-old pursed his lips and narrowed his eyes. Again, La Cortina was horrified.

"No! Why are you asking such loco questions?" She gestured, now very shocked. Manny's suspicious expression remained.

"My dad's a hero and a lotta people wanna do him in." Then La Cortina's mouth was on the ground. "What? What did I say?"

The woman superhero looked long and hard at the teen. Then she squealed loudly. El Tigre was then scooped into a paralyzing hug by La Cortina.

"You are White Pantera's _hijo_?!" The super cheered. Manny was getting crushed against her chest "White Pantera is a _papa_?!"

Squirming, El Tigre felt his rib cage collapse on itself.

"Si! Let… me… _go_!" Manny croaked pushing off the affectionate super heroine. La Cortina dropped the teen.

"Wow. _A lot_ has changed in the last fifteen years!" She gazed off into the sky. Manny held his nearly crushed windpipe.

"How do you know my dad?" The teen super held his chin in his hand as he studied the woman. The Titanium Titan fiasco came to mind.

La Cortina smiled at the boy before patting his head.

"I used to tag along with White Pantera and the Titanium Titan as they fought crime together. But when I couldn't keep up, I founded the White Pantera and Titanium Titan Fan Club." She returned shrugging. Manny's eyes went wide and a crease of disgust came to his face.

"My dad… had a fan club?!" El Tigre winched. To think, _HIS_ dad had a fan club, fans, merchandise and maybe even… _groupies._ "That's _SO WRONG_!! _Thanks_ for the visual!"

La Cortina giggled a little as Manny hopped around, holding his head as he tried not to imagine throngs of women clamoring for his dad's attention.

"Well, I had to do _something_ when I couldn't keep up with White Pantera. Back then, I didn't have superpowers." The woman returned. She then smiled wide. "But now I do!"

With a thought, the inky black substance moved over her exposed skin. La Cortina jumped into the air and did a triple back flip before landing gracefully on her feet. Her black cloak moved like a windblown curtain yet hugged to the woman's body. The black "cloth" covered her entire head and face, revealing nothing of her skin. Manny cocked a brow, wondering how she could possibly see through her costume.

La Cortina paused as her costume oozed off of her face. The woman smiled at the young boy.

"Can you take me to your father, El Tigre?" She beamed. Manny was unmoved.

"Sorry, La Cortina; I don't _JUST_ take strangers to my home anymore." The teen superhero folded his arms. La Cortina fell to her knees.

"Please?! Porfavor?! I haven't seen him in fifteen long years!" She was desperate, taking hold of his shirt and shaking the boy.

El Tigre pushed her off of him.

"Well… " Manny thought it over for a little bit. La Cortina's eyes were big and hopeful. "Fine. But if you do anything funny, you'll end up like the giant ojo."

With his threat, Manny threw his thumb over his shoulder at the KOed eyeball monster quivering in a puddle of its own tears. La Cortina nodded.

"Agreed." She stretched out her hand to the boy. Manny took her hand and shook it.

As he did, Manny was sure he heard La Cortina's costume growl as it burned his hand. He winched, pulled back his hand and shook the sting from it. La Cortina gave a sheepish chuckle.

"My costume sometimes has a mind of its own. It doesn't like to share me." The woman stroked her costume. Manny was thought he heard it purr.

"Uh, okay…" The teen blinked. "Let me just get my friend and we'll go to my house."

"Friend?" La Cortina asked. Manny pointed to the rooftop he left Frida on.

"I gotta go get her before she tries to climb down the side of that building." El Tigre grumbled. Knowing Frida, she's probably using cables she pulled from rooftop satellite dishes as climbing ropes.

Minuets later Manny, Frida and La Cortina arrived at the Rivera Family Penthouse Casa. Simply twisting the doorknob Manny and Frida strutted into the large house. Both teens kicked of their shoes but Frida plopped down on the family's couch.

"Papa!" Manny shouted into the air. "Papa, I brought someone to see you! Papi?"

He paused for a moment, listening for Rodolfo's reply.

"Uno momento mihijo!" Rodolfo's voice sounded like it was in the kitchen. Manny grinned; it was good to be home.

Then he noticed that La Cortina still stood on the doormat, outside of the house. She looked as if she was almost overwhelmed as she stood on the threshold of the house.

"C'mon in La Cortina. Dad will be right here. Mi casa es sou casa." The young teen gestured. Then Manny looked at Frida. "I'm gonna get some soda. You want one?"

Frida nodded and lounged on the couch, thankful to be away from school and off of the streets. The thirteen-year-old boy walked off to the kitchen. Frida and La Cortina were left alone. The blue-haired girl and super-heroine stared at each other.

"So… That costume looks like old black pudding." Frida commented. Yep, Frida can sure start conversation.

Meanwhile Manny walked into the kitchen and saw his dad doing the dishes.

"Hola papi." The boy greeted as he opened the refrigerator and dug around for two sodas. Rodolfo looked up from scrubbing last night's chili off of the dishes.

"Hola mihijo. How was your day?" The super-powered super-dad questioned. Manny was guzzling his watermelon soda.

The thirteen-year-old gave a loud burp and wiped his mouth with his coat's sleeve.

"Bueno, though an eyeball monster kinda trashed the cafeteria today." Manny returned. Rodolfo spun, a white and pink apron over his grey suit and yellow dish gloves on his hands.

"Did this monstro have six tentacles, big gooey tears and an anger complex?" He asked, eyebrow in the air. Manny nodded, not at all fazed by his dad's "homemaker" look. "Well, I'm not sure but I do believe that is the work of Dr. Chipotle and his son. They released it on Miracle City earlier today."

Manny burped again.

"Good to see those idiot scientists branching out. I was getting tired of battling genetically altered peppers." The teen shrugged. "On our way home from school me and Frida ran into the giant ojo again and someone who says she's an old friend of yours."

Rodolfo blinked.

"Who?" He cocked his head, his fedora hat tipping to the side. Manny gestured for the living room.

"Her superhero name is La Cortina but she said her name was Alejandra." He answered. Then he turned on his heel and headed toward the living room. "She's in here and wants to see you."

Before Manny could set another foot down, his father seized the back of his jacket and clapped a hand over his mouth.

"Shh!" Rodolfo yelled on a whisper, his thick glasses amplifying how wide his brown eyes had grown. White Pantera ducked under the kitchen's dinner table with Manny under his arm. "Hijo, tell me! _Who_ is with you?!"

The thirteen-year-old was getting tired of getting his breath squeezed out of him. Manny mumbled through his father's hand over his mouth. Rodolfo removed his and but gave a gesture to stay quiet.

"I told you, papa. A superhero by the name of La Cortina but said her name is Alejandra and that she knows you." The teen whispered back. Then he squirmed in Rodolfo's grip. "Can you put me down?"

Rodolfo didn't put his son down instead bit his bottom lip, suppressing a scream.

"What does she look like?! Manny Rivera! _TELL ME WHAT SHE LOOKS LIKE_!!" Now he was shaking the boy. Manny felt his stomach lurch as his father shook him.

"She has a black blanket-like costume and green eyes! She says she knew you from fifteen years ago and that she founded the White Pantera and Titanium Titan Fan Club!" Instantly Rodolfo stopped shaking his son. Manny saw his father's face pale, even under his mask.

"Oh… _NO_!" Rodolfo squeaked, hand over his mouth as he dropped his son. Manny shook the stars from his head and looked at his father's cowering face.

"What?! _What_ is it dad?! Is she a supervillain bent on revenge?! I KNEW IT! She'll have to deal with-!" Manny was about to spin his belt buckle when his father grabbed him and hugged him tightly.

"No! _Worse_!" Rodolfo quivered. "She's-… she's… a _super_-fan!"

He nearly screamed. Manny was confused.

""Super-fan"?" He questioned, eyebrow high in the air. "She seems fine to me."

"You don't know her like I do! Hijo, _you don't know her like I do_!" Rodolfo was shaking his son again. Manny was gonna puke, he just knew it.

"She already knows you're here, papa! Let me go! I'm gonna hurl!" The thirteen-year-old pleaded. Rodolfo stopped shaking his son.

"Sorry mihijo." Rodolfo apologized. "Just-… Just tell her I'm not here."

Manny jumped out of his dad's arms.

"Dad, you were yellin'; there's no doubt that you're home now. Besides, you don't want to be rude, do you?" Rodolfo quivered but when his son flashed those big brown eyes, he couldn't say no. He puffed out his chest.

"You're right mihijo! I will not be rude!" The Rodolfo sunk and shivered. "No matter _how_ obsessive Alejandra is…"

Manny saw the fear in his father's face as he crawled out from under the table. Taking a shaky breath, Rodolfo stepped into the living room. He saw a woman dressing black talking with Frida on the couch.

"Alejandra?" Rodolfo blinked.

"-sometimes it kinda rides up a bit, if you know what I mean." La Cortina whirled around from talking to Frida when she heard her name. Standing there was Rodolfo Rivera. "White Pantera! Oye como va?!"

Tension was thick with Rodolfo. He curled a finger in his shirt collar and gave a tug.

"B-Bueno… Yourself?" He flinched when La Cortina jumped off the couch and zipped over to him. The female superhero smiled wide as she looped her arms around his neck.

"Just perfecto… now that I'm with you again." La Cortina rested her head on Rodolfo's chest. Rodolfo looked to the ceiling, his expression looking like an exasperated sob died in his mouth.

Setting his hands on the woman's shoulders, he peeled her off of him.

"I thought you, uh, moved to San Francisco. What brings you back to Miracle City? _WHAT_?!" Rodolfo questioned, yanking his hands off of her shoulders like she was red-hot.

La Cortina/Alejandra giggled loudly.

"Gee, Pantera. You look like you've just seen death walk through the door." The woman joked. Rodolfo took a large step away from her, forcing a big smile.

"Oh… I didn't _realize_ I look so-… uncomfortable." He was clearly lying as he took another step away from her. Alejandra giggled again.

"It's because of our past together, huh?" She pointed out, batting her heavily mascaraed eyelashes. Rodolfo winched.

"Well… yes. You were-… uh, how do I say this nicely?" The hero paused, twiddling his thumbs as he tried to find the right words. "You were _STALKING_ ME! ME AND THE TITANIUM TITAN! Of course I'm uncomfortable! You remember the "City Hall incident"?"

Rodolfo folded his arms over his chest as he glared at the woman. Alejandra shrugged.

"I hear they still have a plaque hanging on the fire house wall." She gazed off for a second before she smiled again at Rodolfo. "But I've changed. Honestly! I'm not stalking anyone anymore! And I came to Miracle City again to show you my NEW superpowers! Mirda."

She returned and she zipped over to the couch. With an effortless lift, Alejandra picked up the two-hundred pound chair, including Frida. Rodolfo's face immediately lightened.

"I am _La Cortina_!" She cheered proudly. Then she gave Rodolfo a puppy-dog stare. "I just wanted to share my new superpowers with the _greatest_ superhero on the planet!"

Rodolfo gave an embarrassed giggle.

"Where did you get your powers?" He questioned. "That was impressive!"

Alejandra blushed slightly.

"From an old gypsy woman! She gave me this ring that had this stone that was said to be from a meteor!" The woman grew excited. She held out her left hand. "See?"

With a thought, her costume oozed away from her hand revealing a purple stone. Rodolfo jumped slightly at seeing her costume move on its own.

"Your costume… it's alive?" He questioned. Alejandra smiled.

"Yes! And it can transform into any clothing I want!" Suddenly the woman was in a dressy shirt and skirt, her face, hair and skin showing. Her costume formed a glove on her left hand and over the ring. "Fantastico huh?"

Rodolfo had a skeptical look on his face. He reached out and grabbed her hand to look at the ring, unintentionally making Alejandra giggle and blush. The purple stone looked normal but had a sinister glint about it.

"Yes… But are you sure it's safe?" Rodolfo looked up at the green-eyed woman. Fighting off another wave of giddy giggles, Alejandra cleared her throat.

"Oh si! I've had it for two wonderful weeks! We've worked wonders together!" She beamed. "Every city we've visited, we've helped clean up all the banditos! I'm finally the superhero I've always dreamed I would be!"

Rodolfo looked back down at the ring and studied it. He was a seasoned superhero and he learned to trust his gut. There was something about that ring he didn't like. And as he stared hard at the stone, he thought he saw the costume shift and growl at him. Alejandra's giggle brought him out of his thoughts.

"I like the homemaker look, Pantera." She was clearly flirting, pointing out his apron and rubber gloves. Reality hit Rodolfo hard as he jerked his hand away from hers. "I didn't know you were a papa."

Oh, how he wanted to run and hide! Trying to stay cool, Rodolfo cleared his throat and placed his hands behind his back.

"Thank you. Being a father brings great responsibility. So does being a new superhero, Alejandra." Woo! Deflected. Then he began pushing her toward the door. "So now if you'll excuse me, I have to cook dinner for my family."

Alejandra dug her heels into the carpet but Rodolfo pushed harder.

"I love dinner! Can I-?" She was trying to stay longer. Rodolfo wouldn't allow it.

"Oh, we all have a violent intestinal virus. It isn't safe for you here. There are a lot of good restaurants in Miracle City." Now Rodolfo was trying to shove her out the door. Alejandra held onto the doorframe.

"I have one last question before I leave." Rodolfo stopped pushing and she dropped to her feet outside. Alejandra gave a big smile at her superhero idol. "Can-… You and I fight crime together sometime? That's kinda the reason I have for living right now."

Rodolfo flinched. Alejandra was still as obsessive as ever.

"Should evil arise I will be there. If I see you on the field of battle between good and bad, I shall fight along side you." He bowed his head after that beautiful little speech. But then Rodolfo zipped inside and held the door in his hand. "But I doubt any evil will arise today or tomorrow or in the next month! Adios!"

And with a swift move, he closed the door and Alejandra could hear Rodolfo lock the many locks on the door. Standing there for a long second, she processed seeing her old idol again as her costume began to move over her body. Suddenly a sinister smile split her lips as the costume oozed over her face and head. In the blink of an eye, Alejandra was La Cortina. Moving to the ledge of the building and glancing down to the street, which was about seven stories below, La Cortina jumped. Just before her body slammed on the ground, La Cortina teleported in a blast of black smoke.

With her new ring, Alejandra was clearly more powerful than she led on.

Rodolfo held his chest as he closed the curtains on the door's window. Sinking down to the ground, he curled into the fetal position on the floor. Frida and Manny, who were just watching Rodolfo and Alejandra silently, spoke up.

"Gee Mr. Rivera; you act like she has the plague." Frida pointed out, taking a big swig of her soda.

"Yeah dad. Alejandra doesn't seem so bad." Manny agreed. Rodolfo stood.

"Trust me my son; Alejandra isn't one to mess with. And believe me when I say, it's time for us to move." With that Rodolfo walked to the kitchen with a straight face. Frida and Manny glanced at each other, then shrugged.

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R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK!


	3. Put Your Lights On

Hola fellow Fanfiction Motherhopers! CJzilla here with another update. In this chapter Grandpapi trashes dinner and a supervillain bites the dust.

As I tear down this city with my claws, alls CJzilla has to roar is this: R&R! Love on me... hate on me... You know...

CardcaptorKatara: Fangirls would make an unstoppable army, huh?

KnucklesRedFury207.2: Here's another chapter for you!

KingOfTheLab: Gracias! I'll keep it interesting!

acosta perez jose ramiro: Hey, you got it! My inspiration for Alejandra/La Cortina is Venom from the Spider-Man universe! Nice to see you paying attention and thank you!

* * *

_Chapter 3_

Put Your Lights On

The afternoon faded into a bright evening. Clouds hung over the city and cast the sun's reflection down on Miracle City. Manny and Frida were busy playing a video game as they procrastinated with their homework while Rodolfo was in the kitchen fixing dinner.

The superhero father was putting on the finishing touches to his special chili rellenos, a dish which was a family favorite. And just as he was lighting the candles of the dinner table the back door was suddenly blown in. The resulting explosion blew off Rodolfo's apron, hat, glasses, suit and mask and blew the kitchen table into a nearby wall. Stunned, he stood there in his underwear. Then he heard an angry voice.

"_Chihuahua_! I's having to break into de very casa I's live in!" It was Puma Loco, a.k.a. Rodolfo's father, a.k.a. Grandpapi. The heavy foot falls of Grandpapi's mecha suit stomped into the kitchen.

Just when the retired supervillain was about to rip his adult son a new one, Grandpapi noticed Rodolfo was in just his underwear, though he probably didn't realize that his son was smoking or covered in pieces of the back door. Hitting a button inside his metal suit, Grandpapi's super-destruction machine transformed into a normal looking golden sombrero. The short, aged man skittered up to his son.

"Rodolfo... Dónde está your clothes my son? I's believe in freedom just like any other supervillain but por favor, have some decency." Grandpapi wagged his finger at his son. Rodolfo sighed quickly before he ran his hand over his head, putting out the small fire in his hair.

"Hola, papi. Welcome home." Then Rodolfo set his hands on his hips as he looked at his loveable trouble-making father. "Where were you today?"

Grandpapi's eyes darted around the insides of his glasses, obviously trying to choke out a lie.

"I was… robbing banks, because I's a supervillain and I's do t'ings like dat." The older man gave a toothy smile. Rodolfo wasn't buying it.

"You were playing poker again at that old folk's home "_Casa Adios_", weren't you?" Grandpapi gave a sheepish smile. The superhero son slapped his naked forehead. "What did you gamble with today and what did we lose?"

Grandpapi gasped, absolutely _shocked_ that his son would _think_ he was gambling!

"Rodolfo! Chu knows very well dat I never gamble… fairly." The elderly man put his hands behind his back as he rocked on his heels. "I's bet the house, television, phone and my grandson-"

Rodolfo looked horrified enough to strangle his father.

"But I's won! I's won." Grandpapi gestured for his son to calm down. Then he presented his pinkie finger, which was covered in three huge diamond rings. "Those bufóns at de retirement home lost their stylish pinkie rings. Dey didn't even see de old mirror-behind-el-cabeza trick."

Snickering evilly, just like a supervillain half his age, Grandpapi rubbed his hands together sinisterly. Then glared at his son.

"I would haves been here sooner but someone locked de front door! I was knocking for half an hour! Where were chu?!" The elderly man threw his hands in the air. Rodolfo glanced at the ceiling with a guilty look on his face.

"Lo siento, papi; that was my fault. You see, I had a visit from an old friend earlier today. Do you remember Alejandra Marengo?" Rodolfo questioned. Grandpapi winched violently.

"Si. Wasn't she de loco chica who was... stalking chu like some sorry chocolate bar?" He returned. Rodolfo's eye twitched.

"Well, she's back in Miracle City and Manny brought her here." He added with a forced smile. Grandpapi stared at his son before he sighed.

"We's got to move again." Out of his Golden Sombrero of Chaos, several suitcases popped out. But Rodolfo stopped him.

"No, I think we'll be all right. Alejandra's gone… and so is dinner." He pointed to the decimated chili rellenos and table, splattered against the wall. Grandpapi blushed.

"Sorry." He shrugged. Then they heard feet fall on the floor.

Manny and Frida came peeling into the kitchen.

"Dad! What happened?! Is Alejandra back?!" Manny screamed out but then he saw his father in his underwear, next to his grandfather and standing in the middle of a decimated kitchen. "Uh… papa? Why are you in your boxers?"

Rodolfo pointed at Grandpapi and Manny nodded, totally understanding. Grandpapi set his hands on his hips.

"What do chu call dat?! It took you two childrens forever to get here!" The retired supervillain scolded. "What if dis was a real emergency?! What if I lost mi wallet or el remote-control for the television?!"

Frida and Manny shrugged.

"We had to defeat the monkey overlord of the fifth dimension-!" Frida rattled off before getting a punch in the shoulder from her best friend. "I-… I mean, do our homework."

Rodolfo flexed an eyebrow as Manny and Frida put on insincere smiles. Sighing, the nearly naked superhero father hung his head.

"Well, dinner's on the wall, literally, so what do you say about grabbing something to eat from in town?" Rodolfo brightened. Manny, Frida and Grandpapi cheered.

"We can go to Burritos Explosivos!" The thirteen-year-old boy threw his hands in the air.

"Sure!" Rodolfo answered but then he glanced down at his nearly naked body. "Just as soon as I get dressed."

And he made his way toward a change of clothes.

"Lookin' _good_ Mr. Rivera!" Frida called after him. Grandpapi and Manny slapped their foreheads.

Minuets later Rodolfo, Grandpapi, Manny and Frida were walking toward the burrito-themed, explosive restaurant. It was evening but the street lights overhanging the sidewalk made the darkness manageable.

"So, what are those retired supervillains of Casa Adios up to these days?" Manny questioned Grandpapi as the old man skittered by his grandson's side. The grandfather gave his grandson a sinister smile.

"Playing poker, eating prunes and tapioca and gossiping. Same ol', same ol'." Grandpapi shrugged. "But theys talk a lot about other supervillains. Did chu know that all de supervillains in de neighboring city of Las Cruces were… taken out?"

That caught Rodolfo's attention.

"What was that, papi? All the super criminals of Las Cruces were taken out?" Grandpapi nodded gravely. Frida blinked.

"Whoa… What does "taken out" mean? I mean, did they get _taken_ to the local prison or _out_ to ice cream or something?" The thirteen-year-old girl questioned. Grandpapi shot the girl an annoyed glare.

""Taken _out_"! As in: destroyed, obliterated, and D-E-A-D!" The elderly supervillain gestured. Grandpapi cupped a hand to the side of his mouth and whispered to his family. "Comrade Chaos says dat he heard dat de supervillains in Las Cruces were found, uno by uno, lifeless."

Manny shuttered but Rodolfo laughed it off.

"Those retired supervillains are clearly eating too much prune pudding. Nothing like that exists. It's just harmless gossip among the elderly." Rodolfo got a glare from Grandpapi.

"Rumors or not, everyones inside Casa Adios is nervous." Grandpapi folded his arms. Frida gulped.

"You don't believe that do you, Grandpapi?" She asked. Grandpapi looked off for a quick second and gave his best evil smile.

"No! Of course not! Comrade Chaos has been known to stretch de truths a little. I's believe it when I's see it." The retired supervillain swatted the air. Just then something huge shook the ground, jolting everyone.

And before anyone could think, the ground shook again but then a menacing roar was heard. Looking up the Riveras and Frida spotted a massive Anaheim chili pepper… with _legs_ stomping down the street. A chili pepper monster had the work of a certain evil-scientist supervillain and his pint-sized, but probably _eviler_, son all over it. It was a trademark, really.

"We should take care of a monster before we eat; it's the right thing to do." Rodolfo put a hand on his son's shoulder. Manny gave a loud groan as the monster swatted down buildings with its spicy hands.

"I don't know whether to fight the chili monster or eat it." The thirteen-year-old sighed, feeling his stomach rumble again. Rodolfo nodded and stood next to his son.

"Fighting for justice always builds up an appetite." Rodolfo commented. Manny grinned as he looked up at his superhero father.

"What?!" Grandpapi barked. "Fighting for de evils builds a _bigger_ appetite!"

Rodolfo rolled his eyes.

"Papi, are you going to help us take care of this chili monstro?" He questioned. Grandpapi folded his arms and looked away in an evil pout.

"No. I will watch from de sidelines with de azul-haired girl." The retired supervillain threw his thumb at Frida. Frida scoffed.

"No way! I wanna be in the action!" She beamed. Then her stomach growled. "I bet that chili will go good with some cheese and onions!"

The Anaheim pepper grew closer and people were running from the street, screaming like they'd lost their minds. Rodolfo sighed.

"Let's take care of this before the restaurant closes." He remarked before stancing and ripping his grey suit off of him. Puffing out his chest, Rodolfo Rivera became: "White Pantera!"

Manny chuckled evilly as he gripped his belt buckle and spun it. In a flash of green glow and a tiger's roar, Manny Rivera became:

"El Tigre!" Manny exposed his metal claws and looked at the giant pepper, hungrily.

White Pantera turned to Grandpapi and Frida.

"You two get us a table for four at Burritos Explosivos. I want an Orange Horchata!" With that the superhero speeder, atop his Bronze Boots of Truth zipped toward the terrorizing chili pepper monster.

"Watermelon for me!" El Tigre cheered before blasting his claw to a street light and swinging after his father. Grandpapi and Frida frowned but glanced at each other.

"Do I's look like a waiter?!" Grandpapi called after his grandson and son, shaking his fist. Frida sighed.

"We're just two benchwarmers on our way to a restaurant… missing all the action." The thirteen-year-old girl moped. "And what's with _watermelon_ Horchata? That's gross. Plain's my fav."

"Oh si? Plain's good! De only way to go!" Grandpapi cheered. Frida brightened as she and her best friend's grandfather began walking toward the restaurant.

"Yeah! You can't beat the classics!" Frida beamed.

Meanwhile, White Pantera was the first on the monster and immediately he had to dodge a vault door that was thrown from a nearby bank. The Anaheim chili monster was tearing into one of the wealthiest banks in all of Miracle City and got all the way into the huge vault. Over the shrieking of bending steel and clattering of stolen coins on the ground, White Pantera heard the infamous laughter of Dr. Chipotle Sr. He would never mistake that evil cackle followed by a few violent coughs.

"Dr. Chipotle! Come out of that bank, drop the stolen money and give up!" The superhero hollered into the decimated bank. There was a pause from the chili monster's rampage.

Out of the nearly destroyed bank the Anaheim pepper monster emerged. White Pantera looked over the monster before spotting Dr. Chipotle Sr. seated comfortably in a saddle strapped over the huge beast's head. The nutty super-genius in a scientist's smock, wild thinning-hair and with a mechanized left arm and right eye grinned evilly at the superhero.

"Ah, White Pantera! So good to see a boy scout such as yourself not spending all his time going door to door selling cookies." Chipotle Sr.'s comment made White Pantera frown.

"I am no boy scout!" Then the superhero scoffed before he folded his arms angrily. "They said I can't join because I'm too nice."

Dr. Chipotle Sr. slapped his forehead.

"Don't chu know when you're being made fun of, Pantera?" The mad scientist groaned. Insults came naturally around the superhero but that didn't mean a thing if White Pantera didn't get any of the jokes.

"Give up Dr. Chipotle or I'll knock you off that giant pepper!" White Pantera asserted, pointing threateningly at the doctor. Dr. Chipotle Sr. growled.

"Senior! Dr. Chipotle _SR_.!" The scientist shook a fist. "I demand authority! ...That and I have a son with the same name."

White Pantera furrowed his brow.

"You should have been more imaginative when naming your son! That would have been easier for your enemies!" The superhero argued, shaking his fist at the doctor.

Dr. Chipotle Sr. gasped.

"Oh _yeah_! You're-…! You can't-…! Your mask-…!" The insults died in the mad scientist's mouth. "AHH! Pepper monster, _ATTACK WHITE PANTERA_!"

With a roar, the giant red and green pepper charged at the superhero. White Pantera easily dodged the slow monster and zipped behind it. With a firm kick with his super-powered boots, he launched the pepper monster onto the cement, onto its face. At that moment, El Tigre appeared, gasping for breath from running a few city blocks.

"I-… (gasp) I'm-… (wheeze) here!" The thirteen-year-old super nearly collapsed. Then he saw the chili monster flat on its face.

Unfortunately, the monster saw him as well. Lashing out, the Anaheim pepper monster grabbed El Tigre in its spicy, yet delicious grasp. Struggling inside the pepper's clutches, El Tigre heard the unmistakable laugh of Dr. Chipotle Sr.

"Hola, El Tigre! So nice of you to pop into my monster's fist." The pepper creature stood and the boy super got a look at who was riding it; Dr. Chipotle Sr. Manny gasped.

"I knew it! Giant peppers could only mean the twisted work of Dr. Pablano!" El Tigre declared. Dr. Chipotle Sr.'s only good eye twitched.

"CHIPOTLE! C-H-I-P-O-T-L-E! Ugh! Chu and your idiot father can't get _anything_ right!" The angered doctor shouted. El Tigre rolled his eyes but saw a window now that Chipotle was distracted.

Unsheathing his claws, Manny cut into the pepper's vegetable arm and sliced himself free. The Anaheim pepper shrieked in pain and reeled.

"You are such a baby!" Dr. Chipotle was yelling at the giant mutant pepper as it was whimpering over its boo-boos. "I get bigger scrapes playing Bingo! You're not gonna die!"

Still, that did not quiet the chili's whining over its injuries.

"Surrender now and there will be no more fight!" The scientist heard from below. White Pantera was standing beside El Tigre.

"Not gonna happen!" Chipotle barked back. "Pepper! ATTACK!"

Obeying its master's order, the chili creature lurched for the two supers. White Pantera used his super speed to zip away while El Tigre jumped into the air. With one clean slice of his claws, the teen super cut the straps of Chipotle's saddle. Now the scientist was slipping off of his monster. Dr. Chipotle Sr. fell to the cement, on his face.

"That was lame you pajama wearing weirdo!" Chipotle shook a fist at El Tigre as his Anaheim pepper monster was facing down White Pantera.

But when the evil doctor saw that he was off of his monster and facing down Miracle City's most feared teen sensation, Dr. Chipotle Sr. scowled. Turning on his heel, the scientist bolted toward a dark alleyway. El Tigre was two steps behind.

Little did anyone know that there was a pair of purple eyes watching from the building tops above. As Dr. Chipotle Sr. ran into the darkness of the alley the mysterious observer moved with the scientist, bouncing from roof top to roof top. Darting silently into the darkest shadows, the strange black silhouette dipped down the side of a building, landing onto the street. There it waited for Chipotle to come.

Darting into that dark alley, El Tigre couldn't see much of anything since the night was black. He could see Chipotle's robotic arm transform into a laser and glow with a strike. A laser blast cut through the air and Manny dodged it. The mad scientist kept running. Desperately trying to get away from the young super, Dr. Chipotle Sr. aimed his laser for a fire-escape and fired. Potted plants and mangled steel fell down to the alleyway. El Tigre skidded to a stop as the debris hit the ground, just feet in front of him. A cloud of dust was kicked up, blinding the teen for a quick second.

Dr. Chipotle Sr. grinned sinisterly to himself. That would give that annoying brat something to chew on while he made his escape. He could see the end of the alleyway and the lit sidewalks. Just steps from the light, something black moved in front of the scientist. Scrambling to a stop, Dr. Chipotle Sr.'s mouth dropped open. Before him was like a living shadow with purple eyes narrowed into a menacing slit.

"Wha-?" He choked out. The black shadow hovered before him for a second, seeming almost like a ghost.

Then it lunged at him. Dr. Chipotle Sr. turned and made an effort to run away. But in a move he didn't think a living shadow had, it pounced and slammed him onto the ground. Raising his metal arm, he let a laser blast fly. The poorly aimed blast harmlessly flew over the phantom's shoulder. By that time the shadow had pinned his body and arm cannon to the ground. The scientist struggled but to no avail. He could only watch, held like a helpless victim.

Against the backdrop of a lit city street, he could clearly see the shadow raise an "arm". Its arm formed a foreboding sharp-point. Dr. Chipotle Sr. let out a scream as the shadow monster brought the dagger made of darkness down.

El Tigre suddenly heard a type of scream he'd never heard before. The sound chilled his body. Bounding over the wreckage in the alleyway, the teen ran quickly toward the sound of the scream. Zipping around a corner he saw Dr. Chipotle Sr. lying motionless in the middle of the alley.

"Dr. Anaheim!" El Tigre called out and rushed to the supervillain's side. Upon coming to the scientist's side, he saw that the man was still breathing.

Maybe he just tripped and knocked his head on the ground. Chipotle was clumsy like that. El Tigre couldn't tell in the darkness. The teen saw the lit streets just feet from them. Taking hold of Dr. Chipotle Sr.'s lab coat, El Tigre began dragging toward the light. Once he and the evil scientist came to the light, Manny immediately regretted it. Gasping sharply, El Tigre backed away from Dr. Chipotle Sr., horrified at the sight. Then he did what any child would do in a ghastly situation like this. Manny darted to his father.

White Pantera was dusting himself off after the short battle with the chili pepper monster. The Anaheim monster had no chance against the Bronze Boots of Truth and it was now just a smear on his shoes. One of the easiest battles he's ever fought.

"Papa!" The sound of his son's voice cut through his proud moment. But something about the sound of his son's tone made White Pantera immediately turn. "Papa!"

From out of a dark alleyway El Tigre came scrambling, his face white under his mask. Flying into his father's arms, the thirteen-year-old boy shuddered.

"What? What is it mihijo?!" White Pantera demanded. He'd never seen Manny so shook up.

"Dr. Chili Pepper!" El Tigre peeled his face from out of his father's suit. The teen was out of breath. "He's-… He's-… Something's not right, papa!"

With his parental instincts shifting into overdrive, White Pantera looked his son squarely in the eye.

"Take me to him, Manny." The teen nodded and pointed to the alley.

"Follow me." The boy instructed and flew into the dark shadows. White Pantera was on his son's heels.

Manny led Rodolfo to the street light he left Dr. Chipotle Sr. under. Nearing the super-scientist, White Pantera immediately knew something was terribly wrong. Moving even closer he saw why Manny was so shook up.

"Oh… my." White Pantera gasped looking over the doctor's body.

The man's eyes were white, his irises and pupils totally gone, his mouth was slack with a terrified expression and yet he was still breathing. Dr. Chipotle Sr. wasn't dead… but he wasn't alive either.

"What happened?" White Pantera turned to his shocked son. Manny looked up at his father with big, scared green eyes.

"I dunno! Dr. Paprika blasted his lasers at me, I lost sight of him for a minuet, I heard a scream and this is how I found him." El Tigre held to White Pantera's leg, not even wanting to look at the lifeless doctor.

White Pantera saw his son was troubled and he scooped him into his arms.

"It's all right, hijo." Manny hugged his father tightly. White Pantera passed his eyes back down at Dr. Chipotle Sr. and he knew everything was far from "all right". "It's all right, my son."

As the two horror-stuck supers stood over the incapacitated supervillain, a crowd started to gather around. Police and ambulances were quick to follow that. There was such a commotion about Dr. Chipotle Sr.'s… injuries that no one saw the pair of purple eyes observing from the shadows. The shadow creature watched its latest victim being hauled into an awaiting ambulance.

The short, loud man wasn't dead but neither was he alive. He simply had his essence stolen, a fate that left a person still breathing but void of response and personality.

With its meal completed and victim discarded, the phantom had no other reason to linger at the scene of the crime. But its purple eyes were cast at two particular people in the crowd of aghast onlookers. White Pantera and El Tigre. Staring long and hard at the two supers, the shadow finally surrendered to slinking off into the night and away from the scene of its meal.

R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK!


	4. Miracle City Shootout

Ohayo Tokyo! Konnichi wa London! Konban wa New York! CJzilla here with another chapter. In this update you will see how wrong things can go. Enjoy. I take a lot of inspiration for the titles of my chapters from the Once Upon a Time in Mexico soundtrack and Carlos Santana's masterpieces.

As I flatten this city, alls CJzilla has to roar is this: R&R! Love on me... Hate on me... I don't care.

KingOfTheLab: Thanks. Mmm... La Cortina and the phantom... I'm not talking. You'll have to read on to find out!

acosta perez jose ramiro: I apply myself to strict standards and I will strive to keep on writing excellente work! I like to keep true to the show and I like writing fighting scenes! In this chapter, you will see how Dr. Chipotle Jr. will react.

KnucklesRedFury207.2: Here's your update. Enjoy!

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_Chapter 4_

Miracle City Shootout

Morning was a welcomed sight after such a sour night. Manny hardly slept, the image of Dr. Chipotle Sr.'s pale eyes and ghastly expression stuck inside his brain like a bad song. It was horrible and he couldn't help but feel a little bit responsible for the scientist's condition. El Tigre was just a short distance away and whatever did that to Chipotle could have been stopped if Manny was fast enough. But when the guilt eased an icy fear gripped the thirteen-year-old's spine. Whoever or whatever took out the supervillain doctor was a few yards away from him. The teen could have suffered the same fate as Dr. Chipotle Sr., so why didn't he?

Hopping out of bed with a stale taste in his mouth, Manny walked into the kitchen looking like a sleepless zombie. His brown eyes came to his father, Rodolfo leaning on a countertop, greedily reading the newspaper.

"Buenos días, papi." The teen was happy to see his beloved father. Rodolfo shrieked like a woman, jumping at his son's voice and dropped the paper.

The newspaper glided to Manny's feet and the thirteen-year-old caught the headlines.

"Oh! Oh, Manny. You scared me, hijo." Rodolfo held his chest, sure that his heart had jumped out of his ribcage and was on the floor somewhere. Then he saw the look on his son's face as he read the headlines. "Mihijo, I-"

""Dr. Chipotle Sr. mysteriously ill after fight with White Pantera and El Tigre"?!" Manny read the headlines out loud. The teen grasped the newspaper angrily. "Dad! They're blaming _us_ for Dr. Tabasco's brain-dead condition!"

"I-I know, Manny." Rodolfo stood from leaning on the countertop and walked over to his son. The more Manny read of the headlines, the more he grew angrier.

"But WE didn't _DO_ anything!" The teen growled, clearly still upset from last night's incident. "I _FOUND_ the nutty scientist! I didn't _DO_ anything!"

Rodolfo knelt next to his son and put a hand on Manny's shoulder. The teen looked up at his father with angry eyes. Rodolfo saw that his son was blaming himself for not being able to prevent Dr. Chipotle Sr.'s… incapacitation.

"Oh, mihijo. As a superhero there are certain things you can prevent and there are others that you cannot." The superhero father hugged his son tightly. Rodolfo sighed. "You and I know what happened last night, but we don't know who or what did this horrible thing."

Rodolfo released his son and looked him in the eye.

"But we will catch whoever or whatever did this and clear our name." The superhero father reassured. "We will not let this stand. We are Riveras! Our family name will not be tainted!"

Manny gave a weak smile.

"There's the son I know." Rodolfo smiled back. "Now do not let this interfere with your day. I will investigate what happened last night. Who knows, by the time you get home from school today, I will have solved this mystery!"

The thirteen-year-old boy nodded, but he knew, it was going to be a loooong day.

Three o'clock rolled around and it couldn't have come sooner for Manny Rivera. School was hard. Kids ridiculed him over Dr. Chipotle Sr.'s condition, following the blame the newspaper and news-stations pinned on his family. It rubbed the thirteen-year-old the wrong way, but there was nothing he could do. All he could be grateful for was his best friend Frida, sticking by his side unconditionally.

Frida and Manny exited the school looking haggard from all the teasing, the young Rivera especially. The walk home from school was unusually silent, but in Miracle City, nothing stays quiet for long.

"Dude… I'm really sorry about what happened last night." Frida broke the silence. Manny looked up at his friend.

"I don't understand what could have done that to Dr. Hot Sauce." The boy returned, looking up at the sky. "I never saw anything like that before."

"Was it Sartana of the Dead?" Frida offered. Manny shook his head.

"No and _why_ would the bone hag take out that loco scientist? She has thousands of skeleton banditos and even if she did, why wasn't Dr. Ancho turned into a skeleton?" Nothing was making sense. Manny chewed on his bottom lip. "But it's just my luck that the city would blame mi familia. I was just _there_, I didn't see anything and I don't know how it happened! My dad and I are innocent!"

"I totally believe you, Manny. El Tigre and White Pantera would never do something so horrible!" The blue-haired girl returned. Manny gritted his teeth as he tightened his grip on the straps of his backpack.

"When I get my hands on the filthy porqueria who did this, I'm going to-!" But he was cut short when someone dropped from the sky, literally. Jumping before the two teens was Alejandra Marengo, though she was in her La Cortina form.

Manny and Frida jumped five feet into the air. The woman smiled kindly at them before her inky black costume retreated. Alejandra's human form was revealed.

"Hola!" She beamed happily as she clasped her hands together excitedly. "Sorry for the surprise. I was just-…"

Then she noticed the unusual seriousness on the teens' faces.

"Ninõs, what's wrong?" Alejandra cocked her head at the two gloomy kids. Then she giggled. "You two look like something horrible happened."

Manny narrowed his eyes at the woman.

"Do you live in under a rock?" The teen harshly questioned. The woman was taken aback. "Didn't you see the headlines? Miracle City blames me and my father for what happened to Dr. Habanera last night!"

Alejandra blinked.

"So? The villain was stopped and White Pantera and his hijo got the credit." She shrugged. "Who cares what happens to that anitpático dirt bag?"

Manny huffed.

"Yeah, the nutty scientist _was_ stopped, but not the way my father and I would have stopped him." The teen growled, thinking back at the inhumane way Dr. Chipotle Sr. was incapacitated. "Mi papa and I have honor. We would never do something so _horroroso_ to stop a bad guy! And now we have to clear our name!"

The thirteen-year-old shoved past the woman and stomped down the sidewalk.

"Manny's had a bad day. Uh… sorry and see you later, Alejandra!" Frida gave a nervous smile before darting after her friend. Alejandra was left alone.

The woman stood there watching the son of her idol sulk down the street, clearly upset about the headlines and the stain his family's name had received. Alejandra then grabbed a lock of her chocolate hair and nervously stroked it.

What was the _big_ deal? White Pantera and El Tigre got the credit for taking down a super-criminal. That crazy scientist was a menace to society. Who cares HOW he was taken out? He was no longer on the streets, everyone should be happy, right?

If the son of White Pantera felt this way, White Pantera would feel the same. Hugging herself, Alejandra frowned as her costume began moving over her body again. Crawling, the alien cloth held to her face as it covered her entire body. Again she became La Cortina. The super-heroine stood on the sidewalk, mulling over her dilemma.

Then in a puff of black smoke, La Cortina teleported to another location.

Later that evening, just as the sunset had faded, El Tigre and White Pantera were out, trying to catch what attacked Dr. Chipotle Sr.

Perched on a high building top, the father and son superhero duo kept a close eye on the city. Manny was angry and even Rodolfo felt a little nip of rile over this whole thing. So far, nothing was making sense, there was no evidence and Dr. Chipotle Sr. was still just a characterless vegetable.

"This is nuts." El Tigre growled, crouched next to his father, anger bubbling inside of him. His claws dug into the rooftop, showing his fury. "We have nothing! Nothing to clear the family name!"

White Pantera sighed and nodded.

"I know, mihijo. But whatever attacked Chipotle will show again and we will be ready." The superhero glanced over Miracle City again. "Let's go to the streets, Manny. Maybe we will have better luck down there."

Nodding, the two supers stood.

Racing along the rooftops, gliding over window ceils and bouncing over fire-escapes, the two Rivera superheroes moved toward the streets below. As they flew along the rooftops, both heard a siren. In the middle of Miracle City this was no strange sound, but that was no ordinary siren. It was a security alarm coming from a near by building. White Pantera and El Tigre stopped dead and craned their heads around to the sound of the commotion.

Manny and Rodolfo scrambled to a rooftop, their eyes fixed on the building resonating with the alarm bell. Then they saw them. The Moustache Mafia exiting an art museum's front door. White Pantera and El Tigre growled.

"Dad, permission to beat the candy out of the Moustache Mafia?" Manny questioned, seeing a way to vent all of his anger. Concern surfaced on Rodolfo's face.

"Son, our name has all ready been tainted. Please, use good judgment." White Pantera returned. El Tigre gave him an unconcerned stare and Rodolfo rolled his eyes. "Yes. Go ahead, beat the candy out of the criminals."

"ALL RIGHT!" Manny cheered.

He darted down the row of buildings until he came to traffic lights. Jumping off of the building, El Tigre landed on the light pole and jumped across to the other set of traffic lights. Bounding to an adjacent fire escape and dropping to the street, it was a straight shot to the Moustache Mafia.

"Oye Moustache Mafia!" The thirteen-year-old boy called out. The three lackeys and leader of the facial hair-based gang craned around.

"Holy _cow_! It's El Tigre! The supervillain _killer_!" The shortest of the lackeys cowered. Manny gritted his teeth and clinched his fists tight.

"I'm no killer!" The teen superhero pulled on his ears. "Me and my dad were framed!"

"And speaking of framing… Let's make a picture-perfect fight outta this." The leader of the Moustache Mafia, Don Baffi, gave the teen hero a wily grin. But at their leader's subtle suggestion, the moustache minions did nothing. "HEY! QUIT YOUR SNIVELING AND TOSS SOME FINE ART AT EL TIGRE!"

Don Baffi's eye twitched as his henchmen finally got with the program. The three men used their mobile moustaches to grab onto some of their artsy score. Snatching high-priced painting from inside a potato sack, the Moustache Mafia began hurling art at the teenager. Frankly not caring about the priceless works of art, Manny exposed his metal claws. With a slice, the art cut like butter and deflected.

"Is that all you got?" El Tigre jeered. Then there was a gasp right beside him and Manny knew exactly who it was.

White Pantera, using his super speed, had caught up to his son and was absolutely horrified that Manny was slicing up artwork.

"Holy _hair wax_! It's White Pantera! The OTHER supervillain killer!" The members, save one, of the Moustache Mafia were freaking out.

"I am no killer. What happened to Dr. Chipotle Sr. was not our doing." White Pantera puffed out his chest proudly. "For, we have _honor_!"

The Moustache Mafia glanced at each other. But the superhero father wasn't done. He spun to his son and threw his hands in the air.

"_Manny_! That's artwork! Someone created it and you're _destroying_ it!" White Pantera scolded his son. El Tigre rolled his eyes. "I forbid you to harm anymore artwork!"

Even though most of the artwork was going to be destroyed anyway, Manny conceded to his father.

"Yes, papa." He returned very unenthusiastically.

Don Baffi sighed impatiently, his hand folded neatly on his lap.

"It's nice to see such cooperation between two supervillain killers." The wheel-chair relegated crime boss commented. Manny glared down the elderly man.

"_We are NOT KILLERS_!" El Tigre let out a tiger roar and charged at the Moustache Mafia. The moustached men froze for a second before they dodged the angry teen super.

Don Baffi uncurled his neatly groomed moustache. The hair moved and formed four legs and lifted the crippled man from his wheel chair.

"If you want a fight, you've messed with the right gang." The elderly man growled as he towered over the boy hero.

"Well, I sure hope you didn't think we were here to watch you get away!" White Pantera commented with a bright smile. Don Baffi gave the superhero a long stare.

"Are you sure you're related to that man?" The Moustache Mafia boss questioned El Tigre as he threw his thumb at White Pantera. El Tigre shrugged.

"My birth certificate says so." Manny responded before taking a fighting stance. "Prepare for a trim Don Baffi!"

The thought of the pretentious little hero giving his glorious moustache a trim infuriated Don Baffi.

"Boys! You take White Pantera; this little headache's mine." The criminal hissed. Don Baffi's moustache took a fighting stance. "Things are about to get _hairy_!"

After shooting out that pun, Don Baffi lashed out with his perfect and full white moustache. El Tigre juked to the side and the facial hair breezed beside him. The thirteen-year-old knew the old man's impeccable lip hair was impervious to his El Tigre claws. There had to be another way. Manny had to think on his feet.

Don Baffi flexed his moustache and it wrapped around Manny's ankle. The young super's feet were pulled out from under him. El Tigre was on his back and he saw Don Baffi move over him via his moustache "legs". Frantically and desperately Manny swiped at the hair, trying to slice himself free. No good. Don Baffi's facial hair was too powerful!

"It's been a scream and I will thoroughly enjoy making a pizza out of your face." The elderly man commanded his moustache into an anvil and raised it over Manny's head. The thirteen-year-old squirmed and struggled to get free.

A cry to his father died in his mouth as he saw Don Baffi's hairy anvil began to fall for his head. And just when Manny thought it was curtains, a large laser blast came from the far left and incinerated Don Baffi's moustache. The elderly man blinked in disbelief as his moustache anvil was reduced to ash. El Tigre saw his chance to be free. Rolling to his feet, part of Don Baffi's moustache still attached to his ankle, the teen super darted under the man's hairy "legs". In a few lightning fast moves, Don Baffi's facial hair was tangled and made the super-criminal immobile. The super-moustached villain fell to the asphalt, wrapped in a tangled mess of facial hair.

El Tigre breathed a sigh of relief. He'd be a chunky paste if it wasn't for that rough laser blast… _Laser blast_?!

"EL TIGRE!" Came an infuriated scream from down the street. It was high-pitched and slightly girlish... almost like a little kid's.

Spinning and looking past White Pantera and the rest of the Moustache Mafia in a ball of fists and facial hair, Manny spotted who was addressing him. It was little Dr. Diego Chipotle Jr., son of Dr. Chipotle Sr.! The ten-year-old kid with wild brown hair, a metal left arm, robotic right eye and laboratory smock looked exactly like his father. In El Tigre's opinion, the pint-sized scientist could be more dangerous than his nutty father. But something was wrong with the little scientist. El Tigre came to this conclusion when the ten-year-old flipped a parked car with a flex of his robotic arm.

"You _sorry_ excuse for a hero!" Dr. Chipotle Jr. blasted into the night air. Then his arm suddenly transformed into a laser cannon. "YOU WILL PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID TO MY PAPA!"

The little kid fired his powerful laser cannon. Manny had just enough time to scramble for cover. Laser blasts peppered the ground around the thirteen-year-old boy's feet as he dashed for a building. Ducking behind the brick building, the teen super heard Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s laser beams hit and quiver the entire building. Manny gulped. He'd be as mad as the little scientist if someone had harmed _his_ father.

"COME OUT AND FIGHT YOU FURRY DIRT BAG!!" Dr. Chipotle Jr. roared. El Tigre gulped.

Like heck he'd go out there! The teen super would get blasted to bits by an embittered ten-year-old scientist. Manny had to make the little kid see that he didn't touch Dr. Chipotle Sr.

"Hey! Dr. Poblano Jr.! I-!" El Tigre shouted at the ten-year-old. But in typical fashion, he was cut off.

"CHIPOTLE! CHIPOTLE! CHIPOTLECHIPOTLECHIPOLTE! _CHIPOTLE_!" Dr. Chipotle Jr. screamed. "And I'll CUT MY NAME INTO YOUR CORPSE!"

Manny shuddered as he peeked around the building's wall.

"I'm sensing some hostility. Why don't you just take a few breaths and a walk an-?" A laser blast seared over his head, parting his hair and nearly torching his mask. Dr. Chipotle Jr. stomped toward El Tigre.

As the ten-year-old neared Manny could tell the child had been crying, pretty hard too.

"Hold on!" El Tigre took a step out from behind the brick wall. Dr. Chipotle Jr. looked ready to explode, so Manny got in what would probably be his last words. "I didn't do anything to your dad! I was chasing him, he disappeared for two seconds and I _found_ him like that!"

The small scientist's good eye twitched yet quivered with tears.

"Why? _Why_ did you do that to mi papi? We've never tried to kill you or your father!" That got the ten-year-old a funny look from El Tigre. El Tigre cleared his throat.

"I disagree." Don Baffi interrupted the small scientist. "I've seen you try to destroy El Tigre and White Pantera _hundreds_ of times."

The moustache marvel promptly zipped his lips when he got a venom glare from the ten-year-old. Dr. Chipotle Jr. aimed his laser at the criminal and threatened to blow him into tomorrow. El Tigre caught the kid's attention before he could snub Don Baffi.

"Well, not to take advantage of you on the rebound but-… YES! Yes you have tried to KILL ME AND MY DAD! Though, you never succeeded… But you have given us some cheap laughs at your efforts!" Manny gave the upset ten-year-old a nervous smile. "And I didn't do anything to your papa! _ANYTHING_!"

Dr. Chipotle Jr. sniffled, holding back another wave of tears.

"Save it, El Tigre." The ten-year-old hissed. He then moved his robotic arm in front of his face. "You will pay."

The little kid punched a button on his wrist. Seconds after, the ground shook; another monster was on the horizon. El Tigre's jaw dropped to the ground when he saw a giant guacamole monster trudging over buildings toward them. Jerking his eyes to the ten-year-old scientist, Manny was taken aback at the sinister look on Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s face. The ten-year-old glared at the teen super through the tops of angry, grieving eyes.

"My guacamole monster will take out your father, just as you have taken mine!" A single tear, full of pain fell from Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s eye. Manny gulped and tried to reason with the child.

"No! Uh-… Oh, _what_ was his name? …_Diego_! Yeah! _Don't_ do this Diego! My dad's innocent!" El Tigre pleaded as he saw the mutant avocado monster move closer. The ten-year-old gritted his teeth.

"So was mine." Dr. Chipotle Jr. pressed a button on his wrist. Manny watched as the monster stopped.

At that moment White Pantera launched the three minions of the Moustache Mafia into a dumpster. Panting, trying to catch his breath, the superhero father didn't see the guacamole monster raise an acidic fist above his head.

"PAPA!" Manny screamed. White Pantera glanced up and saw the look of terror on his son's face.

Following Manny's eyes, Rodolfo looked up. He saw the guacamole monster and its fist flying toward him. There was no way he could dodge it in time.

Manny could only watch his father's future unfold in front of him. He thought for sure he'd be going through the rest of his life without Rodolfo there with him.

But just as the monster's fist was inches above White Pantera's head, some dark shape shot out from the city's shadows and tackled the hero, saving his life. The monster's acidic fist slammed onto the empty pavement. The guacamole monster grunted in surprise as its beady mutant eyes came to White Pantera and what looked like a living shadow on top of him.

Stunned, Rodolfo lie on the sidewalk where he landed, looking at what looked like a silhouette of solid night on top of him.

"What the-?" Was all that popped out of the superhero's mouth. The living shadow had purple eyes and a ghostly appearance, moving like a wind-blown curtain.

The shadow grabbed hold of his suit jacket and yanked him out of the way as the guacamole monster attempted to crush him. Rushing out of range of the mutant dip monster, the shadow dropped White Pantera next to El Tigre. The living silhouette with purple eyes spun toward the guacamole monster, fists clenched and ready to strike. Then something else caught the shadow's eyes.

Three men, specifically the Moustache Mafia, were climbing out of the alleyway dumpster White Pantera had slammed them into. The shadow's attention was no longer on the towering mutant monster but on those small criminals.

Moving quickly, the living shadow rushed the three men and tackled all three. The shadow phantom and criminals disappeared into the shadows of the dark alleyway. There was the sound of blows landing and then… nothing.

White Pantera, El Tigre, Dr. Chipotle Jr. and the guacamole monster were all stunned. But the vengeful ten-year-old broke the silence.

"I don't _care_ if you two have help! YOU WILL NOT LIVE TO SEE THE MORNING!" Yep, Dr. Chipotle Jr. was still mad. Punching another button on his robotic wrist, the ten-year-old boy commanded his mutant guacamole monster to attack the Riveras.

The two superheroes gasped as the monster jumped toward them. Both barely had time to dodge the monster as it slammed its fists on the pavement where they were standing seconds before. Falling to a not-so-graceful-landing, Manny jumped to his feet. The guacamole monster wasn't focusing on him, it was attacking White Pantera. A horrified gasp died in El Tigre's throat. This had to stop!

The thirteen-year-old super bounded over to Dr. Chipotle Jr. and grabbed his robotic wrist. Both children struggled because both were evenly matched. El Tigre was powerful but with his long and multi-functional robotic arm, Dr. Chipotle Jr. was putting up a good fight. As the two floundered around, trying to subdue the latter, they were slamming buttons on Chipotle Jr.'s wrist controls. The guacamole monster twitched, new commands flooding into its delicious mind. It proceeded to dance the Disco Duck. Unfortunately the monster was still programmed to attack White Pantera and dancing didn't stop it from trying to crush the superhero. It was attacking in _style_!

"_Stop_ Diego! You're going to _hurt_ him!" Manny was referring to his father. With a flex of his robotic arm, Dr. Chipotle Jr. yanked El Tigre from his feet and slammed him into the pavement.

"That's the whole point, you BIG JERK! I will do to your father just as you've done to mine!" The ten-year-old hissed. Chipotle Jr.'s robotic palm opened up and the laser cannon hummed. "And there's nothing you can do to stop it."

El Tigre felt the heat from the laser blast that was about to cut a hole right through him. But glancing over to his father battling the dancing mutant guacamole monster, Manny wished this whole nightmare to end.

* * *

R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK!


	5. Flor de Mal

Ohyaho Tokyo! Konnichi wa London! Konban wa New York! CJzilla here with another update. In this chapter there is a big fight with this mysterious shadow and Alejandra is cooking dinner. Enjoy.

As I rampage through this city, alls CJzilla has to roar is this: R&R! Love on me... Hate on me... You know this...

KingOfTheLab: _Huh. Thanks for pointing that out. The site which I got little Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s age said that he was a bratty six but when I looked at it after your review, it said he was ten... (CJzilla shrugs) I'll correct previous chapters. Gracias._

KnucklesRedFury207.2: _Oh, White Pantera and El Tigre will survive and the shadow?... You'll find out later._

acosta perez jose ramiro:_ I think kids have the capacity to be eviler than their parents... I am no acception. (CJzilla cackles evilly) Ahem. Thanks!_

Amaris Solbes de la Vega: _**Perhaps** La Cortina is responsible... But don't worry; Dr. Chipotle Sr. isn't gone forever._

* * *

_Chapter five_

Flor de Mal

"Adios El Tigre!" Dr. Chipotle Jr. then gave a cackle that would make his father very proud. Manny held his breath.

Just as the ten-year-old's deadly weapon fired, something tackled him from behind. Dr. Chipotle Jr. was jerked to the side, his metal hand yanked off of Manny and the laser blast harmlessly hit a nearby car. With a grunt of impact the ten-year-old scientist tumbled with his attacker before he was hauled off of the ground, held by the front of his laboratory coat. The little kid's eyes widened in surprise when he saw who was holding him off of the ground. The living shadow-like being that had rescued White Pantera from being squished had a firm grip on his smock, its purple eyes narrowed.

Dr. Chipotle Jr. whimpered before regaining his anger.

"Why you _no-good_ superhero!" The ten-year-old struggled. Then he brought his robotic arm upwards. "I nearly had my venganza!"

Just before he could wrap his iron fist around this living shadow's lithe head, it lashed out. Dr. Chipotle Jr. jumped slightly; the silhouette had managed to catch his fist and jerk it downwards! The ten-year-old felt the living shadow tighten its grip on the front of his shirt and he saw its sharp purple eyes narrow further. It didn't take a pint-sized mad scientist to figure out that something wasn't right. Fear started to set in.

Help came from an unlikely source.

"Hey!" It was El Tigre. The shadow jerked its attention toward the teen super. Manny took a fighting stance. "That's enough."

The living silhouette's eyes widened in surprise. El Tigre stood his ground.

"I don't know who or what you are, but just set Chili Pepper Jr. down." Manny said carefully, his eyes narrowed in distrust. Dr. Chipotle Jr. scoffed angrily.

"I'm starting to think you forget Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s name on purpose." The young scientist remarked. El Tigre shrugged.

"It comes and it goes." Manny looked back at the shadow. "Now put him down. He's just a little kid; he may be a villain but he's still just a little ninõ."

Just as he thought the mysterious shadow was about to comply, it narrowed its purple eyes. With the ten-year-old scientist still in its clutches, there was a puff of black smoke and instantly, the shadow and Dr. Chipotle Jr. were gone.

El Tigre processed what just happened. A heavy lump of dread settled at the base of his chest. This wasn't right; that shadow thing _wasn't_ right!

"Oh no!" El Tigre whirled around and spotted his father flinging artwork at the guacamole monster. Forgetting about what White Pantera had just told him about destroying artwork, Manny called to him. "Dad!"

Rodolfo glanced up, threw one more painting at the mutant avocado-dip monster and zipped to his son.

"Where is that little kid with the metal arm and anger complex?" White Pantera saw fear in his son's face. El Tigre gulped.

"That shadow thing! It took Dr. Ancho Jr.!" The thirteen-year-old rushed. White Pantera knew the situation looked bleak for the ten-year-old villain, but Manny wasn't going to give up. "I may have failed his father, but I will not fail him! THIS I SWEAR!"

The ground shook again. The guacamole monster still had a lot of life still in its delicious body as it roared at them.

"Then find him! I'll take care of this thing." White Pantera told his son. The superhero zipped toward the guacamole monster, stretched out his heel and dove at the creature.

Manny knew his father had this handled; he had to find Dr. Chipotle Jr. But where would a living shadow take a bratty yet dangerous six-year-old mad scientist?

At that moment, seven stories above the battlefield, the shadow reappeared with Dr. Chipotle Jr. still in its grasp. The ten-year-old was disoriented from the sudden teleportation but he was fighting his abductor.

"_Let go of me_! I must get revenge on El Tigre and White Pantera for my father's sickness!" The child kicked and squirmed but could not break the shadow's grasp. The living silhouette held the ten-year-old at eye-level, observing the mini-supervillain like a cat would a mouse.

"White Pantera and El Tigre did nothing to your father." The shadow finally spoke. Dr. Chipotle Jr. gasped and ceased his fighting. "Do not accuse them for what happened to that man. I did it."

The shadow's voice was gravely, hoarse and echoed. Its purple eyes were narrowed and he thought he heard it growl at him.

"I hoped to give the credit to White Pantera and El Tigre for my move but instead this fickle Miracle City _blamed _them." The living shadow stated. Then it ran an icy shadowy finger under the ten-year-old's chin. "_I_ took the supervillain off of the streets."

Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s mouth was on the ground. The pint-sized scientist began to hyperventilate when he saw the shadow raised an inky black arm. The ten-year-old villain eye widened as the silhouette's fingers formed a dagger-like points and it held them threateningly in front of the child. Dr. Chipotle Jr. screamed.

El Tigre, standing on the street below, heard Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s terrified scream. Without hesitating, the teen superhero dashed to the building and scaled the structure, digging into its brick walls with his claws.

The shadow gave a little chuckle at the terror on Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s face. His father was full of essence and his child would make a fine addition to tonight's dinner. All ready the living shadow has eaten several small time criminals, pickpockets and thieves, including one very large, very powerful supervillain. Its power was growing and soon, it would be strong enough to take on Miracle City's greatest villain.

"What are- what are you going to do to me?!" The ten-year-old quivered, trying to yank his robotic arm from the shadow's inky clutches. It was no use.

There was an evil chuckle from the walking silhouette.

"I am going to eat your essence, just as I did with your father." The shadow cooed and ran a cold hand through the boy's unruly brown hair. "It's quite painless, I assure you, but you won't be much of anything other than a breathing husk after my meal is complete."

Dr. Chipotle Jr. gave a girly shriek and writhed. This pleased the shadow. There was so much life in this tiny villain.

"You have plenty of essence in you; children always do." Then shadow dragged the side of its sharp finger gently across the boy's pale face. "Thankfully Miracle City is full of criminals and villains just like you so I won't go hungry. With my help, this city will be crime free, just as White Pantera has always wanted it."

The walking silhouette took its free hand from the ten-year-old's face. Opening its claws, it raised its arm. Ignoring how helpless Dr. Chipotle Sr.'s young son was, the hardened shadow was about to enjoy a child's essence.

Scrambling as fast as he could, Manny got to the top of the seven-story building that Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s screams had come from. When his eyes scanned the rooftop El Tigre gasped. The living shadow was about to plunge its long claws into the ten-year-old villain's body! Manny launched his grapple fist. The iron fist flew through the air with lightning speed. It contacted with the unsuspecting shadow and blown off of Dr. Chipotle Jr. by an El Tigre super punch. Dr. Chipotle Jr. was dropped to the rooftop, unharmed yet scared out of his mind. As El Tigre rewound his fist, he looked over to the ten-year-old scientist.

"C'mon Poblano Jr., on your feet!" Manny ordered to the pint-sized villain. Dr. Chipotle Jr. scrambled toward El Tigre, and even though under normal circumstances they hated each other's guts, the little scientist ducked behind the teen superhero.

The teen hero held his breath, his green eyes darting from the shivering ten-year-old behind him to the hostile shadow, recollecting itself from the powerful stroke. Finally the living silhouette stood, its purple glowing eyes seen clearly through the darkness. Manny gritted his teeth.

"Back off, you black blob!" He commanded, making fists.

The shadow's eyes widened at El Tigre for the second time. But the ghostly figure didn't move from remaining before the two children. The hair on the back of Manny's neck was standing straight. Whatever this thing was, it was powerful and supremely dangerous and holding its ground. He didn't want to fight it, but if he had to, to save Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s life and his own, then he would.

"I said GET LOST!" Manny stomped his foot and exposed his claws. To his dismay the shadow narrowed its eyes.

It began moving toward them, its inky black arms forming long knives. Glancing between the living shadow and the terrified ten-year-old scientist, Manny made his decision to run. Looping his arm around Dr. Chipotle Jr. he held him close.

"Hang on Habanero Jr.!" El Tigre said into the little scientist's ear. But Dr. Chipotle Jr. gagged.

"Get offa me!" The ten-year-old seemed to forget an evil walking shadow was creeping closer. He tried to push Manny away. "Your breath stinks like queso!"

El Tigre growled.

"I'm not leaving you here with the walking black booger!" The teen super barked back, but then he smelt his breath. "And I didn't have any cheese today! It's the cafeteria food at school!"

Dr. Chipotle Jr. winced and clapped a hand over his mouth.

"That's _disgusting_!" He cried. "The next time we fight, Dr. Chipotle Jr. expects you to brush your teeth! Have some consideration, _you cadaver-breathed-chucklehead_!"

Manny huffed angrily.

"I'm trying to save your butt, wise guy!" The teen snarled. "I-!"

But out of the corner of his eye, he saw the shadow lash out with its sharp arms. Pushing Dr. Chipotle Jr. to the ground, Manny bent backwards. The ghostly black blade sliced the air where the ten-year-old scientist's head was milliseconds before. Jumping in front of the silhouette, El Tigre took a rip at it with his claws. Bending like a liquid the shadow dodged the slice and moved under the teen's arm.

The shadow shifted wicked fast and it made Manny jump. El Tigre's eyes went wide as there was a moment he waited for the shadow to hit him. Yet, it hesitated, pausing when it could inflict a blow on the vulnerable teen superhero. As the living silhouette simply stared at the thirteen-year-old hero, a laser blast caught it by surprise, courtesy of Dr. Chipotle Jr. The intense light ray hit the shadow square in the back. The inky shadow yelped in pain as it reeled. Manny saw his chance to strike. He gave the reeling shadow a kick and knocked it to the ground.

The two kids had succeeded in making the living shadow angry. The silhouette narrowed its eyes and quickly recovered. It stood and took a menacing stance; its claws were exposed, its shoulders were raised and it glared at them through the tops of sinister purple eyes. That was enough to make Manny rethink fighting this thing.

"Oh, _FORGET_ THIS!" El Tigre shot his grapple fist and it wrapped around Dr. Chipotle Jr.

"Hey!" Dr. Chipotle Jr. barked. But the ten-year-old didn't have time to argue about personal space.

Pulling the mini-scientist under his arm, Manny held Dr. Chipotle Jr. like a football. Then in a move that only El Tigre expected, the teen super dove off the seven story rooftop, surprising both the attacking shadow creature and Dr. Chipotle Jr. As they fell the wind whistled in Manny's ears but it wasn't half as loud as the ten-year-old villain's girly screaming. Jumping off the roof was the only alternative to facing down that psycho living shadow! Besides, it put a heck of a lot of distance between them and the inky freak.

Shooting out his grappling claw, El Tigre caught a street lamp. He and Dr. Chipotle Jr. swung to safety and gracefully landed on the ground. Coming to a gentle stop on the pavement, Manny scanned the street for his father and the guacamole monster he was battling. He didn't have to wait long. White Pantera went flying through the air; obviously he had been thrown and came to a rude splat against a building. Gravity pulled the dazed superhero to the ground and he fell flat on his face.

From around a street corner emerged the guacamole monster, looking like guacamole would in a fight. Its delicious skin was pitted with dirt and fine artwork. White Pantera was just starting to get off of his face when the monster picked up a car and pounded the superhero with it. Manny flinched as the guacamole monster kept grinding the car onto his dad. But despite the car, Rodolfo appeared to be winning against the guacamole monster.

Then something else caught El Tigre's attention. The ten-year-old scientist was still screaming from the fall off of the building.

"Hey! HEY!" Manny yelled over Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s shrieking. The pint-sized scientist glanced at his enemy savior. "Shh! We're on the ground."

The ten-year-old jumped out of El Tigre's arms and stood a pace away from him.

"Don't _DO_ that!" Dr. Chipotle Jr. pointed his metal arm at the teen super. "I nearly _wet_ myself! Dr. Chipotle Jr. don't know what's worse, _you_ or that walking carnivorous _shadow_!"

Manny rolled his eyes.

"I _should_ have left you with the shadow. Now call off your monster before it creams my dad-!" At that moment a blast of black smoke suddenly appeared in front them. As the haze cleared, El Tigre and Dr. Chipotle Jr. were staring at the living silhouette again.

The shadow's eyes went from Manny to the ten-year-old scientist. Without hesitating, it dove at Dr. Chipotle Jr. again. El Tigre jumped between the two and tackled the shadow mid-air. Both tumbled. While in that chaotic motion, Manny noted that the shadow wasn't fighting back; it was resisting or even tensing. Weird but he took the chance to fight it. Cranking back a fist, El Tigre planted it into the shadow's "face" then kicked it off of him. The dazed shadow came to a rude stop on the wall of the art museum. It oozed to the sidewalk and lie still for a second. Manny grinned and punched the air.

"Woo! I am _awesome_-!" But then something from behind grabbed him. It was the mutant guacamole monster. "_Whoa_!"

The monster brought the much tinier El Tigre to its face and roared at him. Manny's face paled and his eyes grew huge. It was gonna _EAT_ him!

"Anaheim Jr.! STOP YOUR MONSTER!" He called down to the pint-sized scientist. Dr. Chipotle Jr. realized that the mutant guacamole was about to swallow the teen hero.

"Oh, yeah. Let me just punch a button and-" Manny's girly screaming was suddenly stopped. The guacamole monster had thrown the superhero in his mouth and swallowed.

Dr. Chipotle Jr. blinked, surprised at how fast El Tigre was eaten.

"Wow. New record for Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s guacamole monster." The ten-year-old mused for a quick second. Then the little scientist doubled over in a fit of hysterical laughter.

That was _awesome_! It was: one-two-three, El Tigre on the menu! Sure, Dr. Chipotle Jr. was concerned but it had been such a long time since he saw his most hated enemy get eaten! Yeah, even in life-threatening situations, villains will be villains and the ten-year-old scientist took a moment to savor his accidental bonus over El Tigre.

Through the corner of his eye, Dr. Chipotle Jr. saw the shadow get up off of the ground. It shook the stars from its head and glared at the small child. Glancing around, it didn't see El Tigre so it took the window and leapt at the pint-sized scientist.

This time the tiny villain stood his ground.

"Eat this, you inky moco!" Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s robotic arm transformed into a gun that was bigger than he was. Lining up the shadow between his crosshairs, the small supervillain gritted his teeth. "This is for mi papi!"

Just when the pint-sized criminal had the charging shadow in his sights, it suddenly jumped into the air. By the time Dr. Chipotle Jr. fired his laser gun, the shadow was behind him. Picking the six-year-old by the back of his lab coat, the shadow spun him and glared him in the eye. Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s eye went wide again and he gave a nervous chuckle.

"And when Dr. Chipotle Jr. said inky booger, I-… uh… Dr. Chipotle Jr. meant it in the best way possible." The small scientist gave a scared smile. Again he was staring down the creature that made his dad sick.

The shadow cranked back its arm, forming it into a sharp trident and was about to make a pincushion out of Dr. Chipotle Jr. The ten-year-old watched as the shadow shoved the dark blades at him. He braced for impact and shut his eyes, sure that he was done for.

Just then the guacamole monster that had swallowed El Tigre exploded. Pieces of acidic, genetically altered guacamole spewed in all directions and a huge blob of it fell on the shadow's arm holding the little scientist off of the ground. The living silhouette shrieked in pain and promptly dropped Dr. Chipotle Jr.

Just feet away, Manny was peeling himself out of the innards of the guacamole monster. Acidic avocado dip stung his skin but he smelt awesome! Dr. Chipotle Jr. couldn't make a very skilled monster but he could sure make a tasty one. Shaking the access guacamole from his face and body, El Tigre stood. He immediately saw the shadow screaming as a blob of acid guacamole ate away at its arm. The shadow was vulnerable!

"_Oye_ Jalapeno Jr.!" He caught a stunned Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s attention. "Use your laser!"

Dr. Chipotle Jr. snapped out of his daze and transformed his robotic arm into his laser gun. He fired a single shot and it hit the shadow creature dead on. The living silhouette lurched forward, holding its inky body where the laser hat hit. It shrieked again and stumbled around. Then it brought its purple eyes up to the pint-sized supervillain and El Tigre standing right next to him. With one final look the shadow creature retreated, backing into a nearby alley.

Both Manny and Diego held their breath as the streets fell silent once again. Their eyes were stuck on the dark alleyway that the shadow had disappeared into. Part of El Tigre wanted to chase after the creature but another part told him to let it go. He had a funny feeling that he'd face that creature soon enough.

Tense seconds passed before Manny accepted that the walking shadow was really gone. The teen superhero let out a sigh of relief. That was a battle to remember. But where did that freaky shadow come from? Then he noticed that the tiny villain by his side was unusually quiet.

El Tigre looked down at Dr. Chipotle Jr. The ten-year-old held an angry eye at the alleyway that the walking shadow had disappeared into.

"Hey… Estás bien? Are you all right?" Manny nudged the pint-sized villain. The little scientist glared up at the teen hero.

"Dr. Chipotle Jr. no longer blames you or your idiot father for my papa's condition, El Tigre." The ten-year-old frankly stated. Then he looked back at that alley. "That shadow thing did it."

El Tigre glanced between Dr. Chipotle Jr. and the dark alley.

"How'd you find that out?" Manny questioned stupidly. Dr. Chipotle Jr. gritted his teeth as his robotic hand clinched into a massive fist.

"It told me. It said that it sucked out his essence and tried to give the "credit" to you and White Pantera!" The tiny villain threw his hands in the air. Manny blinked.

"Essence? Nothing can steal essence, Ancho Jr." The teen super returned. Then he smiled. "But now me and my dad's names are cleared! No longer are we known as supervillain killers!"

Manny puffed out his chest proudly but noticed that Dr. Chipotle Jr. was staring at him.

"Are you gonna stop that thing? I mean, it told me that it was taking out supervillains…" The ten-year-old trailed off. Manny tried to read the child's mind.

"Heck _yeah_, I'm gonna stop it!" El Tigre returned like Dr. Chipotle Jr. was stupid. The thirteen-year-old super glanced at the alley that the shadow had disappeared into. "Supervillains are criminals but they are also people. My papi and I have sworn to protect the people of Miracle City and this we will do."

Dr. Chipotle Jr. rolled his eye.

"Your heroism is nauseating." The ten-year-old folded his arms and glared off. You didn't have to be a mind reader to know that the little evil scientist was still very upset about his father.

El Tigre saw a scared, angry little kid that was very alone. Against his better judgment he sighed and put a hand on the little scientist's shoulder.

"I'll catch that thing; it might know how to make your dad better." Manny offered. Dr. Chipotle Jr. huffed gruffly but gave his most hated enemy a nod. "Hey! How about you sleep over at my house? It'll get your mind off of your papa!"

The ten-year-old looked up at the teen super like he'd grown another head and swatted away his hand.

"Me?! Dr. Chipotle Jr., sleep over at _your_ house?! La casa of my most _hated_ enemy?!" Dr. Chipotle Jr. exclaimed, hands in the air. Manny shrugged.

"Yeah." El Tigre answered like it was no big deal. The ten-year-old boy with the robotic arm glared at the super for a long moment.

"All right, but you better have some candy." Dr. Chipotle Jr. agreed. Manny cheered.

"_All right_! I have another dude to hang around with!" And he looped an arm around the ten-year-old's shoulder. Dr. Chipotle Jr. pushed him away.

"No more touching." The tiny villain growled.

Walking down the street, Manny and Dr. Chipotle Jr. came to the car that White Pantera's legs were sticking out of.

"Dad, can Dr. Poblano Jr. spend the night?" El Tigre asked. There was a moan from White Pantera as he twitched under the car.

With a flick of the wrist, Manny rescued his father from underneath the mini-van crushed up like a tin-can. Crumpled and squished, White Pantera stood and held his head.

"Sure thing, Manny. Can we play hopscotch now?" Rodolfo obviously had some sort of head trauma. White Pantera reeled and Manny caught his father.

Sighing, El Tigre looked at Dr. Chipotle Jr.

"Hey, it's only fair that you help me carry him back home." Manny cocked a brow at the ten-year-old villain and shrugged. "_Your_ guacamole monster pounded him into a pancake."

Groaning, Dr. Chipotle Jr. grabbed White Pantera's feet with his robotic arm. Between the two of them, the thirteen-year-old hero and the ten-year-old villain carried the delirious White Pantera back to home.

By the time Manny, Rodolfo and Dr. Diego Chipotle Jr. came to the Rivera penthouse casa, it was a little passed eight. Crawling into the house, the exhausted superheroes and pint-sized villain fell onto the couches.

"Grandpapi! We're home!" Rodolfo called into the air, body sprawled out over the couch, Manny sitting on his lap.

"_Rodolfo_! _Manny_! Chu is here at last! COME INTO LA COCINA _RÁPIDO_!" Grandpapi sounded urgent. Flying off of the couch, Rodolfo launched Manny off of his lap and into the opposite wall.

Dr. Chipotle Jr. roared with laughter as Manny did a face-plant into the stucco wall. But in a second Rodolfo and Manny zipped into the kitchen, expecting Grandpapi to be knee deep in trouble. Instead they found the retired supervillain seated at the huge dinner table, surrounded by mounds of food.

"Dere chus are! I thought I's have to eat all dis food by myself." Grandpapi shoved a fork full of carne asada into his wrinkly mouth. Rodolfo and Manny held their chests.

"Papi! WHERE'S YOUR CABEZA AT? We thought you were in _danger_!" White Pantera gasped as El Tigre promptly fainted on the floor. Then the superhero noticed all the food. "And who cooked all this food?! I know that you've only mastered the microwave."

Folding his arms at his father, Rodolfo waited for Grandpapi's eloquent rebuttal. The elderly yet naughty retired supervillain swallowed his mouthful of food and tossed a thumb toward the stove.

"Alejandra cooked all dis food." Grandpapi replied. Rodolfo flinched violently as he eased his eyes over to the kitchen.

There was curvy yet obsessive Alejandra Marengo, suddenly at White Pantera's side, holding up a big plate of enchiladas.

"_Hi_ White Pantera!" The woman cooed excitedly leaned into Rodolfo's personal space and batted her full eyelashes. Rodolfo leaned backwards, discomfort written all over his face.

"Alejandra. How did you get in here?" The superhero questioned exasperatingly as he face-palmed. Alejandra gave a nervous chuckle.

"I- uh… Through a window." She gave a sheepish smile as she pointed at a nearby window. The window was torn up, obviously opened by force while a crowbar was on the window-ceil.

Rodolfo stared wide-eyed at Alejandra before he frowned.

"Alejandra… You _broke_ into my house?" It was more of a rhetorical question. Alejandra gave another sheepish chuckle but Grandpapi spoke up.

"She is a woman after my own heart. Why don't chu marry someone like dat, Rodolfo?" The retired supervillain questioned. White Pantera slapped his forehead as Alejandra gave a giddy giggle and flushed bright red.

"I… visited to cook you a _meal_!" The obsessive fan held out her plate of enchiladas. "Superheroes need to eat after defending the city from evil!"

Just then Dr. Chipotle Jr. came walking into the room.

"I smell chorizo." The ten-year-old villain voiced before tripping on Manny, who was still fainted on the floor. Dr. Chipotle Jr. did a face plant.

When Alejandra caught sight of the little mad scientist, she gave a loud squeal and tossed her enchilada platter in the air. Rodolfo caught the enchiladas… with his face. Cursing quietly at the fainted El Tigre, Dr. Chipotle Jr. started to get up off of the floor but he was hauled to his feet and nearly crushed in a hug.

"Oh! _El ninõ es muy bonito_!" Dr. Chipotle Jr. was being flattened in the arms of a strange woman and swung in a circle. "He's SO CUTE!"

The pint-sized supervillain gagged, the breath being squeezed out of his tiny body.

"Ai!" Grandpapi cried, jumping up from his chair. "It's dat little half-robot-half ninõ who's out to destroy Manny!"

But before Grandpapi could transform into Puma Loco, Manny stopped him. The woozy thirteen-year-old crawled up from the floor, using the table to pull himself upwards.

"He's spending the night, Grandpapi." Manny couldn't feel his head. But then he saw the huge spread of food on the table. "Oh! _Chimichangas_!"

Taking a seat, the hungry teen hero began stuffing his face. Rodolfo wiped off most of the enchiladas off of his face and turned to Alejandra. She was still squeezing the life out of the adorable Dr. Chipotle Jr.

"Uh… Alejandra?" He tapped her on the shoulder. Alejandra promptly dropped the ten-year-old villain and spun to White Pantera.

"Si, White Pantera?" She looked at him with big, affectionate eyes. Rodolfo fought off a case of the willies when he caught sight of her arm.

Her skin was red, looking like she had a bad burn on her left arm. Reaching out, Rodolfo examined her skin.

"What happened to you?" He questioned, eyebrows furrowed in concern. "This looks bad."

Alejandra promptly jerked her arm away and clapped a hand over the burn. Her green eyes were wide yet darted around, as if she was looking for a lie.

"I- uh… I burned myself cooking. Yes! Cooking. While I was making flan, the oil spilled over and got me." She gave a forced smile. Cocking an eyebrow, Rodolfo didn't buy it but he let it slide.

"Alejandra, I-… Thanks for cooking but mi familia is tired and we need our siesta." Rodolfo told the woman. Alejandra's cheerful demeanor faltered for a second.

"Oh… All right." Then she smiled. "Superheroes need their rest!"

And Alejandra made her way towards the door, her head bowed slightly. Rodolfo inwardly groaned, running his hand over his face. Part of him knew better but the majority of him felt supremely guilty.

"Alejandra?" Rodolfo called after her. The woman stopped and spun excitedly. "Come by tomorrow morning so that we can fight some crime together."

Rodolfo forced an excited smile. Alejandra immediately brightened.

"De verdad?! Oh! That would be so magnifico!" She twirled happily. Rodolfo gulped, hoping that this wouldn't come back and bite him. "Oh, one question, White Pantera…"

It took all he had to remain in the living room with the obsessive super-fan. Alejandra twirled a lock of her chocolate hair around her finger before she looked back up at her superhero idol.

"I haven't seen the Titanium Titan. Where is he?" She cocked her head at White Pantera. Rodolfo's face fell serious.

"The last I saw of the Titanium Titan, he was trying to destroy my son and I." He replied, disappointment clearly in his voice. But then he looked up and was startled by the conflicting look on Alejandra's face.

"_Que_?!" Her eye twitched. "The Titanium Titan... _evil_? NO! He is good! He was _your_ sidekick back in the day!"

Rodolfo nodded, pained that his old friend with liquid metal arms had turned bad.

"But now he has embraced the dark side, Alejandra. He is no longer how you remember him." He answered. Alejandra looked utterly shocked by the news.

"I d-… It's _imposible_. The Titanium Titan was _so_ good." She gulped and returned her saddened green eyes to Rodolfo's. "Then… where is he now?"

The superhero hung his head and sighed.

"He has a lair outside the city's docks, in the Statue of the Peoples, though I don't know if he's there anymore." Rodolfo answered.

But when he brought his head up, Alejandra was gone and the door was wide open. That was odd, but Rodolfo didn't want such an obsessive super-fan around him for too long. Maybe she'd go bother the Titanium Titan and give him some peace.

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R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK!


	6. Dias de Los Angeles

Ohayho everyone! CJzilla here with another chapter! In this update, there is an unsettling partnership and what's left of the villains are freaking out! Enjoy.

As I crumble this city with a swat of my mighty tail, alls CJzilla has to roar is this: Love on me... Hate on me... I don't care.

_KnucklesRedFury207.2: Yes. Watch out Titanium Titan, watch out. (CJzilla cackles evilly)_

_KingOfTheLab: Thanks! I like writing battle scenes! And as far as "The List"... Unfortunately, more people are added to it._

_acosta perez jose ramiro: Thanks! I thought Dr. Chipotle Jr. staying at the Rivera household was funny too!_

_Moranofchaos2: Yeah. Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s age difference is my fault. He's really ten and not six... I thought I corrected all the age errors... Thanks for pointing that out though! And as far as lessening the Spanish words... I'll make some acceptions. I won't take all Spanish words out though._

_Amaris Solbes de la Vega: Awesome! I'm glad someone that knows the Spanish language is reading this! I knew "la" is female and "el" is masculine and I accidentally made those few slip. (CJzilla chuckles sheepishly) I blame the blatant lack of the Spanish language in my life for the grammar errors. Sorry. Correcting..._

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Chapter 6

_Dias de Los Angeles_

It was nighttime for the Miracle City docks. Hardly a ripple disturbed the cloudy green water. Off in the distance a large bronze statue stood watch over the bustling city. The Peoples' Statue of one of the people made a political statement as well as brightened up the port's horizon. Standing resolute, fist poised dramatically to fight oppression, the moving statue would be an unlikely haunt for a hero sidekick turned bad guy.

Miracle City's night lights shone far and reflected a little on the bronze figure, making it glow like a dim star. Generally, the statue was ignored by the locals but tonight a pair of purple eyes was cast in its direction. Standing quietly on a lonely dock, something that looked like a living shadow stared at the Peoples' Statue. It paused, carefully looking over the statue. Then it narrowed its eyes. In a gust of black smoke, the shadow with purple eyes was gone.

Inside the lair affectionately called "Fancy Headquarters in a Big Fist", everything was dark and quiet. In a puff of black smoke, a new face came to the secretive hideaway. Purple glowing eyes pierced the darkness and they carefully studied the news surroundings. Computers, screens, control panels and communications galore littered the small area inside the bronze statue's fist. The dim shine from the many computers and television screens provided the only lighting to the room. But at end of the room was a giant bay window that looked over Miracle City. The faint city lights created a very haunted atmosphere.

Creeping further into the hideout, the living shadow moved into the room. The smell of cheap fast food wafted through the air, also the bronze metal making up the hideout gave the area a metallic odor, similar to that of freshly welded iron. Food wrappers and glass bottles were all over the floor and hard to avoid. Making careful movements to avoid stepping on a partially opened bag of chips or a half-eaten boxes of pizza, the walking silhouette investigated further.

Something then crunched a candy wrapper from behind. The shadow spun.

"RRrrr_AH_!" A half-battle cry, half-angry grunt came out of the darkness. The shadow caught a flash of computer screen lighting on silver metal arms.

A rock-hard and cold blow struck the living silhouette across the face. Reeling and falling to the floor, the shadow partially saw the attacker. Standing over the shadow, by the light of the distant faded city and the computer screens, a pair of fiery red eyes glared poison. It was the Titanium Titan or… what he'd become.

Hauling his powerful and shiny liquid metal arm over his head, it formed a gigantic battle axe. The shadow's eyes widened as the Titanium Titan brought his arm down. Not a millisecond too soon, the shadow slid between the Titan's legs and recovering behind him. The Titanium Titan slammed his battle axe onto the floor but found no trespasser underneath his blade. Spinning, the small ex-sidekick growled.

"_Who_ are you?!" He formed his liquid metal hands into maces and swung at the intruder. "And _what_ are you doing here?!"

The shadow dodged each blow effortlessly but didn't return the hostile offensive. The unrequited battle infuriated the Titanium Titan and fueled his fight.

"If you're not here to fight-!" He ordered his arms into wrecking balls. "-then _why_ are you here?!"

Swinging the heavy metal spheres, the Titanium Titan launched them at his trespasser. The shadow sidestepped the bold strokes. But as the ex-sidekick brought his left arm around to strike the shadow, he didn't expect a living silhouette to _catch_ his heavy metal wrecking ball.

"Stop Titan!" The shadow suddenly pleaded with a raspy and concerned voice. The Titanium Titan was taken aback.

But he wasn't about to let his guard down. The Titan pushed back but the shadow shoved. The ex-sidekick found himself reeling and coming to a rude stop on a wall. The Titanium Titan had his back against a wall as the shadow's haunting purple eyes staring into his own.

"Who are you?! And why did you intrude on my home?!" With a flex of his liquid metal arms, the Titanium Titan cuffed the shadow off of him. The walking silhouette was blown backwards and deep into the darkest area of the lair.

Gritting his teeth, the Titan hit a light switch on a nearby wall.

"Come out and fight!" He barked transforming his arms into buzz-saws. There was a groan from the dark shadows that he couldn't see into.

"You're still sharp, even after all these years." Came the shadow's reply. There was a silky chuckle that suddenly turned feminine. "It's been a long time, Titan."

Now the Titanium Titan was really stumped.

"I'm sick of this! Reveal your identity or I'll cut you up into teeny, _bite-sized_ pieces!" The Titan spun his buzz-saws just to drive home the point. Again, there was a smooth, husky chuckle from the darkness.

"You know me, Titan; we go way back." From the shadows stepped a curvy woman in a black dress with a hip-high slit on her right leg. The Titanium Titan couldn't believe his eyes. "You remember? Alejandra Marengo from fifteen years ago?"

The name stuck but not her appearance. The last time the Titanium Titan saw Alejandra Marengo she was pencil-thin, had thick glasses and wore a school girl's uniform. But now... Even though she was standing halfway in the shadows, the ex-sidekick could make out her womanly curves. He never imagined that he's see the super-fan-girl again, let alone inside _his_ headquarters.

"Oh sí." The Titan mused, lowering his arms and staring at her beautiful form. "Alejandra Marengo. You were the president of the White Pantera and Titanium Titan fan club from the old days… The stalker."

The woman gave a guilty chuckle as she tucked an invisible strand of hair behind her ear.

"Uh… yeah. But I've _changed_!" Alejandra walked out of the shadows and into the light. She gave the small ex-hero-sidekick a smirk as she placed a fist on her cocked hip. "But you haven't changed. You can _still_ lucha like you could fifteen years ago, Titan."

The Titanium Titan smiled bashfully and twiddled his fingers. He was thankful he was wearing a mask or else a blush would have shown through. Alejandra neared. The Titan swallowed hard as she stopped in front of him.

"I came back to show off my new superpowers I received from this awesome ring!" Alejandra smiled brightly as she presented her left hand. "Mirda!"

Without a word more, Alejandra shape-shifted into a living shadow with beaming purple eyes.

"As La Cortina, I have the power of shape-shift, teleport and master the darkness." The woman's figure and voice were distorted, making her unrecognizable as Alejandra Marengo. Then she began circling the Titanium Titan. "So that's new with me. What about you? You look… well…"

In all truth the Titanium Titan looked sleepless, stressed and like he had a headache. His teeth were uneven like he'd been grinding them, his eyes were wide like he'd been staring at a television screen and he smelt like gas station microwaveable chimichangas.

"I-uh… I've been bueno." The Titan was clearly lying as he watched Alejandra move around him. "I can't… complain… _much_."

Then the hair stood up on the back of his neck when he saw Alejandra narrow her purple shadowy eyes at him. She slinked off to a nearby chair, sat and shifted into her La Cortina form. As her shadowy costume faded away, her face was exposed. Her sinister green eyes were narrowed in skepticism as she crossed her legs.

"Really? Because that's not what I hear." La Cortina stated, lacing her fingers together. Her stare turned distrustful and angry. "I hear you've switched sides and tried to even destroy White Pantera and El Tigre."

The Titanium Titan saw her costume writhe.

"Yes, I did try to destroy El Tigre numerous times but I only threatened White Pantera _once_!" He growled, his liquid metal arms reacting with his emotion. The Titanium Titan took a step toward the woman.

Alejandra stood from the chair, her inky black costume falling like a curtain around her. Both supers had a stared down, daring each other to try something. But then La Cortina softened.

"What happened, Titan? If what I heard is true and you've really gone bad… why? Why did you turn evil?" She asked softly, cocking her head at the ex-hero-sidekick.

The Titanium Titan raked his teeth together.

"It is because of El Tigre." The small ex-sidekick fumed, his metal fists clinching. He spun, his back to the woman. "White Pantera and I were inseparable, but when that little _mocoso_ was born, he took my best friend away from me and _ruined my life_! So if getting my _just_ revenge on the little pain-in-the neck makes me a villain, THEN SO BE IT!"

Alejandra felt her costume twitch at the word "villain". Any villain must be stopped. It demanded the Titan to be stopped. But… but she couldn't let it. This was the _Titanium Titan_! White Pantera's sidekick who meant nothing but good to the world! Alejandra had to convince her costume that he was still good.

"But surely there is still good inside of you, Titan." La Cortina was almost pleading as she watched the alien cloth form a shadowy spear on her arm and lurch her body toward the ex-sidekick. "Your heart cannot turn completely black. Think of all that you stood for fifteen years ago!"

It was a good thing that the Titanium Titan wasn't facing her or else he'd see her wrestling with her costume as it was dragging her body closer and closer to him. The Titan huffed and folded his arms.

"Yes. I am still on the side of justice, though Rodolfo may not think so anymore." He spun. At that moment Alejandra fell into his arms, his answer satisfying her alien costume and confirming his hero status.

"Oh, muy bien!" La Cortina smiled as the Titanium Titan held her warily in his liquid metal arms. She breathed a sigh of relief as she wiped invisible sweat droplets off of her forehead. "For a second there, I thought you were really bad."

She felt her alien costume calm down and she gave the ex-sidekick a big grin.

"Well, now that we have that out of the way-" La Cortina then giggled and walked her fingers up the Titanium Titan's bare chest. "-what do you say you and I start a partnership? That way, me and you can wipe this city _free_ of villainy!"

The Titanium Titan quivered but then got excited.

"You mean, I can redeem myself and show White Pantera that I am _truly_ a hero?!" He cheered. Alejandra nodded. "I'll do it!"

He threw his arms in the air, accidentally dropping La Cortina in the process.

Finally! The Titanium Titan could show White Pantera that he was a hero! He would get rid of all the crime in Miracle City and regain Rodolfo's trust and friendship! Not to mention he'd be partnered up with a knockout beauty like La Cortina. _Bonus_.

Ah, morning. The pleasant time of day when everything begins anew and starts to function. Cut to the Rivera family casa. Everything was quiet and peaceful on this beautiful morning. After a night of fighting villains and/or eating a large dinner, Rodolfo and Grandpapi were fast asleep in their individual rooms. Manny was sleeping soundly in his bed but he had a death grip on his El Tigre belt buckle, just so his guest didn't get any ideas about stealing it. Dr. Chipotle Jr. was sleeping on the floor, at the foot of Manny's bed, his left robotic arm transformed into a laser gun, just in case he needed it to blast the thirteen-year-old hero that was snoozing above him.

The Rivera household wasn't ready to wake up anytime soon, but the villains of Miracle City had other plans.

There was a deafening boom that shook the house and everyone out of their beds.

"HELPING THE POOR!" Manny cried, jolted from sleep. Still pretty much still asleep, the thirteen-year-old jumped out of bed, landing right on Dr. Chipotle Jr. and raced for his door.

Flinging the door open, the teen hero peeled for the front door. Rodolfo and Manny nearly collided as they scrambled out of their rooms. Flying for the living room, Rodolfo was in a wife-beater and his favorite heart-themed boxers and had his mask shoved over only half of his face. Manny was in his Queso Fantastico pajamas, one bunny slipper and his hair looked like if lost an argument with his pillow.

When both heroes came to a skidding stop into the living room, what they saw shocked them all the way down to their feet.

"_HOLY Caramba_!" Manny nearly shrieked. In front of them, well, standing in their living room, was a crowd of supervillains! "VILLAINS!"

El Oso, Vultura, Black Cuervo, General Chapuza, Comrade Chaos, El Tarantula and Señor Siniestro stood in the Rivera family living room, looking like they were about to tear the place down. Spinning his belt buckle, the not as awake as safely possible Manny Rivera changed into El Tigre. And the ¾ asleep Rodolfo Rivera shredded his tank-top and posed.

"White Pantera!" Rodolfo called out.

"El Tigre!" Manny gave a tiger yowl. Both supers were ready to dive into the crowd of supervillains when El Oso stopped them.

"_WAIT_, MAN!" The powerful but not so bright bear-based thug waved a tiny white flag made out of dirty underwear. White Pantera and El Tigre stopped, feet raised mid-air.

El Oso and the rest of the villains gave a sigh of relief.

"Chu want to give me a heart attack, man?!" El Oso held his chest. Rodolfo and Manny glanced at each other.

"YOU?!" Rodolfo threw his hands in the air, sleep sand still caked over his eyes. "What about _US_?! A party of villains BLOWS a hole through our front door and _YOU'RE_ worried about _YOUR_ heart?!"

"What _the hey_, guys?! Can't the savage frenzy of violence wait until we wake up?" Manny blinked the sleep out of his eyes as he tried to slow down his heart.

"Oh, we're not here to fight." General Chapuza narrowed his undead eyes, his hands folded neatly behind his back. Rodolfo and Manny gave the villains a wide-eyed stare.

"We're-a here-a to hideout, you one-a eyed prairie dog-a." Señor Siniestro growled as he stepped toward El Tigre. Manny and the robotic-suit villain nearly pressed foreheads together.

"Whaddya mean… "hideout"?" Manny hissed at his archnemisis. "Is that some sort of new villainy lingo for "breaking into a hero's house and scaring them to death"?!"

Siniestro and Manny snarled at each other until another villain broke the stare down.

"No, mi amore." Black Cuervo spoke up, shoving Señor Siniestro out of the way and batting her eyelashes as El Tigre. The thirteen-year-old girl villain tickled Manny's chin with her finger. "It simply means we'll be hanging out here for a while."

El Tigre stepped out of Black Cuervo's reach as the other villains began to run through the house.

El Oso gave a giddy laugh as he jumped on one of the couches, flattening it instantly. The other villains fanned out, getting into the refrigerator, bathroom and photo albums. Manny and Rodolfo stood there in a stupor as Grandpapi finally peeled himself out of bed.

"Whatever pulled me from my bed is going to get it!" The retired supervillain grumbled, rubbing the sleep from his wrinkly eyes as he skittered up to his son and grandson. Then Grandpapi noticed that Rodolfo was in his underwear again and that there was supervillains running around the house. "Did I's just miss a supervillain fiesta?! Why did no ones wake me up?! And Rodolfo! Where's your clothes again?"

White Pantera shot his father an annoyed glare. Just then Dr. Chipotle Jr. came stumbling out of the hallway, holding his thumbing tiny head.

"El Tigre!" The mini-scientist slurred, pointing at the teen super. "You nearly mashed mi cabeza! Where's the stinkin' fire?!"

Manny glanced at his father and grandfather. He must have jumped on the poor little villain's head when he sprinted out of bed. Shaking the stars from his head, Dr. Chipotle Jr. looked around and saw the heroes' house overrun by supervillains. The ten-year-old blinked as he saw General Chapuza looting the refrigerator.

"Holy cucharón. I thought you said you guys don't like supervillains?" Dr. Chipotle Jr. spun to White Pantera and El Tigre. He set his hands on his little hips. "And all this time Dr. Chipotle Jr. thought you heroes didn't DO supervillain fiestas."

The tiny villain stuck his nose in the air in a mad pout. Manny rolled his eyes as he looked to dad and Grandpapi.

"We gotta DO something! Black Cuervo and Vultura are going through our photo albums!" The thirteen-year-old pointed to the two bird-based she-villains giggling as they went through an album marked "Potty Training Manny". Manny held in a horrified scream. "We gotta get these villains outta here!"

"I's know exactly what to do!" Grandpapi boldly proclaimed. With that the elderly supervillain skittered of to his room.

Manny glanced up at his father.

"What's Grandpapi up to dad?" The teen wonder questioned. Rodolfo sighed.

"Knowing Grandpapi, it could either be very good or very bad." The superhero hung his head. Just then Grandpapi came skittering back into the living room.

"I's been saving dis for such an occasion." He was holding a big white box in his arms. Carefully, Grandpapi worked the box open, flinching when the lid popped off.

As Manny and Rodolfo peered at the contents of the mysterious white box, both gave the older man a disappointed look.

"Papi. Is this really going to get rid of the villains?" Rodolfo sighed as he tossed his thumb over his shoulder at the rowdy bunch of villains. Grandpapi nodded vigorously.

"Oh sí, oh sí! Chu just watch!" The retired supervillain gestured for Rodolfo and Manny to stand out of the way. Then Grandpapi took in a big breath and yelled: "_DONUTS_!"

Every villain head turned hungrily. Indeed, in Grandpapi's hands was a box of various donuts. But lest he be trampled and ripped to pieces for holding the pastry delicacies, the retired supervillain cranked back his arm and tossed the box. Unfortunately for Señor Siniestro he caught the box… with his face. Donuts of all types, fillings and sprinkles beaned the Italian-cowboy-wannabe in the face. Señor Siniestro didn't have time to react when he was jumped and nearly mauled by donut-hungry villains.

Seconds later, the house was quiet at the villains happily ate their breakfast pastries.

"Wow." Manny awed. "I can't believe that donut trick actually worked."

Grandpapi nodded proudly.

"Everyone got a donut? Yes?" Grandpapi looked around the room. Señor Siniestro was still on the floor, groaned since he'd been beaten within an inch of unconsciousness. "Bueno. Rodolfo, if chu would?"

Stepping aside, Grandpapi allowed White Pantera to speak. Glancing at his genius father, Rodolfo cleared his throat.

"This is madness, even for _you_ people!" The superhero pointed out. "Why have you all blown into our home?"

"Well, if we knocked, would you have let us in?" Comrade Chaos asked, his bearded cheeks swelled with donut. Rodolfo pursed his lips at the old Russian villain.

"Probably not." White Pantera answered honestly before he focused again. "But why are _you_ here?! Are you _ASKING_ to go to prison?"

"Ai, man." El Oso groaned, pieces of a bear-claw donut spewing from his mouth and threw his fuzzy thumb towards Señor Siniestro. "The tin can man told chu why we're here, man."

"Sí. We are here to hide." El Tarantula as hanging on the ceiling. Rodolfo cocked a brow.

"From what?" White Pantera asked. The villains in the room shuddered.

Just as they were getting somewhere, Frida Suaréz came racing into the house, a frightened look on her face and newspaper under her arm. The villains jumped ten feet in the air and tensed, but as soon as they saw El Tigre's trouble-making friend they relaxed.

"Manny! Manny!" Then Frida stopped. Her deep blue eyes widened when she saw all of the villains eating donuts… without her. "Whoa. I'm not here for _one_ evening and you guys throw a _wicked_ supervillain PAR-TAY without me! I want a donut!"

The thirteen-year-old girl ran up to Señor Siniestro, who was trying to get off of the floor, plucked a sprinkled donut from off of his demolished face and chomped down on it.

"Frida! We were just about to find out why all these guys are-!" Manny was cut off when Frida shoved the morning paper into her friend's face. The teen hero peeled it from his face and glared at his friend.

"Read it!" She flailed her arms in the air. Glancing down at the headlines, Manny began reading the news out loud.

""El Mal Verde Found Unresponsive On Mount Tortura"?" The thirteen-year-old's mouth fell open but he kept reading. ""Legendary bandito found by mailman early this morning, unresponsive, with same unexplained illness as Dr. Chipotle Sr. White Pantera and El Tigre are no longer suspects. Instead mysterious shadow creature blamed for supervillain casualties"! Holy _Molé_."

Frida swallowed her donut.

"I _KNOW_! I didn't know El Mal Verde got mail." She stated. Manny gave her a glare.

"No! El Mal Verde bit the dust! _Mal Verde_! The most toughest and vicious bandito of _all time_!" Manny tapped the headlines. He then gasped as he glanced over the villains. "He's gone and _YOU'RE ALL NEXT_!"

The villains screamed, gasped and/or fainted.

"Yes." General Chapuza spoke, his smoky undead voice filling the room. "But not once has this shadow attacked a hero. We are all that is left of the supervillains in Miracle City. Our best bet for survival is here with goodie-goodie White Pantera and his son."

"Hey! I'm no goodie-goodie!" Manny growled. Rodolfo cleared his throat.

"Now's a bad time to turn evil, Manny. That shadow creature seems very fond of supervillains." White Pantera held his chin. El Oso fell to the floor and on the superhero's feet.

"Please, man! Chu gotta protect us!" The thug pleaded, flat on his stomach and staring up at White Pantera. "We be _deads_ without protection! That creepy shadow is gonna get us and I's don't wanna die, man! I DON'T WANNA DIE!"

The other villains stood, nodding their heads in agreement and fear all over their faces. Rodolfo glanced over at his family. Grandpapi was nodding like his son would be out of his mind to NOT let them stay. Manny simply shrugged.

"Whatever. But I ain't sharing my room with Señor Stupido here." He pointed down at Señor Siniestro. The Italian cowboy-wanna be stood and growled at his enemy.

"Same-a goes for-a me, you-a dirty dog." The villain spat in his horrible Texas accent then he folded his arms defiantly. "The-a only reason-a I'm here-a is because I wanna live. That-a and to see the-a blue-haired-a she-goddess again-a."

Siniestro gave Frida a dirty smile and raised his eyebrows suggestively. The thirteen-year-old rocker chick blinked at the robotic supervillain, her cheeks full of donut. Rodolfo stepped between them.

"I see no reason for the villains to not remain here." White Pantera voiced. "If it is for your safety, then by all means you villains may stay until we catch this shadowy beast."

The villains whooped and began running around the house again.

"_Provided_-" Rodolfo stopped them. "-that each of you agree to behave and respect our boundaries. No TPing our house, no stealing and _no_ tearing the wallpaper off the walls. Manny, that means you."

The thirteen-year-old hero was peeling off the wallpaper of his own house. He stopped and gave a sheepish chuckle.

"Agreed?" White Pantera barked at the villains as he put his hands on his hips. The super criminals mumbled and growled their agreement and Rodolfo sighed. "Good. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get some clothes on."

Vultura, Black Cuervo and Frida giggled as Rodolfo went walking off to his bedroom. Manny face-palmed as he watched his boxer-clad father walked away. _That_ was embarrassing.

"All right MANNY!" Frida cheered punching her best friend in the shoulder then threw her hands in the air. "We's got ourselves the makings of an awesome SUPERVILLAIN PAR-TAY! Woo! We need chips and dip! We need party games and music! _OO_! And a piñata!"

Just then Black Cuervo jumped onto Frida, grabbed her by the back of her shirt and flew to the ceiling chandelier. The thirteen-year-old villainess laughed as she strung up Frida by her skirt on the ceiling lamp.

"You make such a nice piñata Suárez!" Black Cuervo cackled as Frida yelped in surprise. "Now all I need now is a bat and this party will really get started!"

"Hey! Frida's not a piñata!" Manny barked angrily. Black Cuervo smiled sweetly at her thirteen-year-old hero crush.

"Oh, you silly." The villainess giggled. "Suarez makes an excelente piñata, now be a good bad guy and get me something to hit her with."

Then a laser blast clipped Cuervo's wing. Craning around Black Cuervo spotted a very angry ten-year-old scientist with his laser arm still smoking.

"Back off Black _Chicken_!" Dr. Chipotle Jr. hissed. "Leave that blue-haired vixen alone!"

Manny and Frida flinched in disgust. Black Cuervo gritted her teeth.

"Oh yeah?! Some pinheaded robot geek with freaky hair is gonna tell me off?!" The thirteen-year-old villainess growled, making fists with her hands. Then there was the sound of another pair of rockets.

"The robot-a boy is-a right-a, you-a yellow-bellied filly!" It was Señor Siniestro, using his rocket robotic body suit to hover next to Frida. With a gentle gesture, he plucked her skirt from the chandelier and held Frida tenderly in his arms. "So-a nice to finally-a have you in my-a arms, Frida."

Manny promptly puked in a potted plant.

"Help, please!" Frida voiced, clearly uncomfortable in Señor Siniestro's arms.

What she, Manny and most of Miracle City didn't know was that the considerable older looking Señor Siniestro was actually a thirteen-year-old Italian-American boy named Sergio. But inside his metal armor suit, no one was the wiser to his age. He even went to the _same_ school as Manny and Frida!

"Oh, go stick your nose in a meat grinder you cowboy-wannabe." Cuervo hissed. Señor Siniestro growled.

"Tough-a talk-a from-a a little birdie-a. Don't-a make me-a angry 'cause I'll-a pluck out your-a feathers." The robotic supervillain returned. Cuervo slashed the air with her "talons".

"I'd like to see you try!" The thirteen-year-old villainess barked back.

"Suits me pilgrim-a." Siniestro returned. And he promptly dropped Frida to the ground.

Black Cuervo and Señor Siniestro dove at each other, swinging punches.

"_All right_, man! We's got ourselves a brawl, man!" El Oso cheered and dove into the fight. Not ones to skip out on a fight, the rest of the villains, young and old, joined the battle.

Manny, Frida and Grandpapi just watched.

"Oh! It just like thirty years ago when I's was in villain college." With that Grandpapi jumped into the brawl, swinging punches wherever they landed.

Manny glanced at Frida as the villains fought each other.

"Awesome!" The blue-haired rocker chick squealed. "The fight and party, _not_ the villains' creepy interest in me."

She fought of a case of the willies. Manny smacked his forehead.

The villains tumbled around the living room, flinging whatever they could grab onto at their opponents. Dr. Chipotle Jr. was squirted out of the brawl and landed on the coffee table. At that moment Senor Siniestro slammed El Oso onto the other half of the table. The little ten-year-old scientist was rocketed into the air and toward the door. Thankfully someone caught him. Opening his eye, Dr. Chipotle Jr. was looking into the green eyes of certain super in a black dress.

* * *

R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK!


	7. Corazon Espinar

Ohayho Tokyo! Konnichi wa London! Konban wa New York! CJzilla here with another update. In this chapter things at the Rivera house go south and La Cortina feels betrayed! Enjoy.

As I breathe my radioactive fire down upon this city, alls CJzilla has to roar is this: R&R! Love on me... Hate on me... You know...

_KnucklesRedFury207.2: Alejandra is back! It doesn't look so good for the villains._

_acosta perez jose ramiro: You know... that would be awesome. El Oso as a rug. And when he gets dirty, you can take him outside and BEAT him! (CJzilla laughs) Gracias!_

_CardcaptorKatara: Yeah. I'd jump in and fight with the villains. It'd be just like a normal night at my house!_

_Moranofchaos2: Don't freak out! And I can see you're not suffering from insanity... you're enjoying every minuet of it! And as far as the "secret word"... what are you talking about?_

_KingOfTheLab: Interesting. I'm craving churros myself..._

* * *

Chapter 7

_Corazon Espinar_

The super heroine known as La Cortina a.k.a. Alejandra Marengo stood there, her eyes slightly wide as she stared at the young supervillain in her arms. Dr. Chipotle Jr. stared right back at her, kinda stunned himself. La Cortina blinked and then brought her eyes upwards. Her mouth steadily dropped to the floor.

"Oh, my." The female super whispered as her big eyes went wide. Before her, in the home of White Pantera, were several supervillains who had somehow missed her grasp.

The supervillains glanced at each other, wondering why such a strange looking woman was staring at them.

"What are chu looking at, man?" El Oso finally got uncomfortable enough to say something. Not bothering to answer, the woman finally scooped her mouth off of the floor.

La Cortina's eye twitched.

"Supervillains." She simply voiced, her face twisting with a seething scowl. Before all eyes, her costume suddenly squirmed.

Dr. Chipotle Jr., who was still in La Cortina's arms, had a front row seat to how strange the black cloth covering her body was acting. Something was eerily familiar about it. He'd seen that dark fluid movement before… But where? It was on the tip of his tongue; it was so inky black and ice cold… Almost like a shadow…

Realization hit Dr. Chipotle Jr. like a brick wall at mach 4.

"WAAA!" The ten-year-old scientist suddenly screamed and flew out of the woman's arms. He cocked his laser gun to fire. "IT'S HERE! THE MONSTER'S _HERE_!"

La Cortina glanced at the pint-sized villain, her eyes suddenly turning ice cold. All the villains in the room shot up off of the floor and jumped back.

"WHAT? What's here, man?!" El Oso held his chest, glancing between the small mad scientist and the curvy woman standing in the doorway. Dr. Chipotle Jr. broke out into a cold sweat, his scarlet eye wide with terror and his aim completely fixed on La Cortina.

"T-The m-monster! The shadow monster that _ate_ my father's essence!" The small scientist quivered. He craned over to Manny and Frida. "El Tigre! DO SOMETHING!"

Manny and Frida glanced at each other before they laughed at the freaking scientist.

"That's not the monster, that's just Alejandra Marengo. You're just paranoid Dr. Paprika Jr." The teen sensation swatted the air like it was no big deal.

"Sí! Dis just super-loco fan of Rodolfo's with superpowers! Hola Alejandra!" Grandpapi spoke up and waved at the woman. "I's see chu've noticed our… uh… company."

La Cortina's eye twitched again and she was clearly forcing a smile.

"Hola El Tigre. Hola Grandpapi." She waved, clapping her hands over her quivering costume. She squirmed with her costume, getting her some weird looks from the supervillains and kids alike. "I didn't-… (strain) mean to- (groan) come at a bad-… t-(grunt) –_time_!"

Looking past her weird writhing Manny smiled.

"Oh, it's not a bad time Alejandra." The thirteen-year-old super shrugged. La Cortina forced another smile.

"T-then w-why are t-there so m-many s-s-s-s-supervillains in y-your home?" She stuttered, her teeth clinched shut. Her costume was going crazy as she fought for control.

Manny glanced over the supervillains.

"They're hiding out. El Mal Verde was taken out last night and they don't want to be next." Frida answered smiling wide before she blurted out the news. "We found out who's been doing this!"

Alejandra's eyes went wide for a split second.

"Oh?" She questioned innocently. "And who is it?"

"The same shadow thing that me, Dr. Ancho Jr. and dad battled last night!" Manny spoke up. Then the young super puffed out his chest. "We will catch the monster! THIS WE SWEAR!"

La Cortina's face fell dark, bowing her head as she gave Manny a hurt look. Just then White Pantera came walking into the living room, now fully dressed in fedora hat, glasses, suit jacket and black pants.

"All right, what is all the yelling about?" Rodolfo said into the air. Then he noticed the supervillains backed into a corner and one very tense, trigger-happy-looking Dr. Chipotle Jr. "What's going on? I leave for two minuets and-"

And as soon as he saw La Cortina standing quietly and a little sinisterly at his wrecked doorway, White Pantera shivered.

"Uh, Alejandra… I didn't expect you so early." Rodolfo forced a smile that was dripping with discomfort. "As you can see I've-"

But he was cut off by La Cortina.

"Good job, White Pantera. You've cornered all of the remaining villains into one place. Now we can take them out once and for all!" Alejandra then cackled loudly. Everyone else glanced at each other.

"Alejandra… WHAT are you talking about?" Rodolfo questioned walking in front of all the villains and looking the super-fan in the eye.

La Cortina blinked at her superhero idol.

"Supervillains… All in _one_ place… You promised to fight crime with me this morning and _look_!" She brightened considerably. "You've got every remaining criminal in Miracle City here! Oh! You must really respect me!"

Her big green eyes grew even bigger at what she _thought_ was an affectionate gesture from Rodolfo. She smiled brightly and squealed.

"FINALLY!" La Cortina did a happy dance. "I've won your respect! I'm a bona fide superhero! Ah… I can die happy now."

White Pantera flinched violently again. He better clean this up before it got any uglier.

"Uh… you've got this all wrong Alejandra." Rodolfo just tore the moment away from the excitable super-fan. He gestured to the silent supervillains. "These supervillains are under my protection. You see, the very same shadow creature that Manny and I fought last night is behind all of the supervillain casualties. And these criminals will remain here until I find and defeat this horrible shadow monster."

Alejandra's face fell so fast and so hard, it shocked White Pantera.

"What?" La Cortina whispered, so shocked that her voice couldn't rise any higher. She took a step closer. "These are supervillains, White Pantera. How could a hero like you be protecting them from… that shadow who is wiping crime out of the city?"

Rodolfo shook his head.

"True, these ones are super-criminals and I would LOVE to see Miracle City free of crime!" The superhero beat his chest. Then he grew serious. "It doesn't matter if this mysterious shadow monster is pin-pointing supervillains, I will protect them and find this vile creature before it strikes again!"

La Cortina processed what he just said. Rubbing her arm, Alejandra brought her confused and hurt eyes up to White Pantera's.

"So, you would protect these criminals and fight this shadow who is merely trying to help make Miracle City supervillain-free?" She cocked her head. Rodolfo pondered what she said for a quick second and then he nodded.

"Yes. This evil shadow monster must be stopped before it takes out another person." White Pantera answered.

"Aw!" El Oso beamed and picked the superhero up into a hug. "Thanks, man! Chu is de best archenemy dat a supervillain could have, man!"

The bear-based thug squeezed Rodolfo. He coughed.

"It's what any true hero would- (strain) do. Thank you, El Oso." White Pantera could hear his ribs beginning to crack. "Uh, Oso. A little space, please?"

"Oh, sorry, goodie-goodie man." Oso released the superhero and Rodolfo promptly fell to the floor, gasping for air.

Grandpapi then stepped out in front of the crowd of supervillains but held his back to Alejandra.

"All rights mi fellow scum, let's put our cabezas together. We's need to find dis filthy garbage before it strikes- ACK!" The retired supervillain was suddenly lifted into the air by an inky black tentacle that had wrapped around his chest.

"What the-?" Manny questioned, suddenly see his grandfather floating above the ground. He followed the tentacle with his eyes and saw it was coming from Alejandra's black dress.

La Cortina's green eyes were angry and stained with hurt. She glared at White Pantera.

"What you are doing is nothing short of _condoning_ super-villainy!" The woman hissed, swiping the air with her hand.

White Pantera was shocked at seeing his most loyal fan degrade his hero status. Then Alejandra's bottom lip quivered as her costume began to writhe, making long tentacles.

"I was just trying to _help_ you! And you turn on me!" Big blue crocodile tears formed in her eyes and she clasped her hands together. "Supervillains do not belong on the streets or in existence! Why?! Why are you protecting super-criminals?!"

Rodolfo narrowed his eyes at the woman.

"Supervillains or not-" The superhero was cut off by his son.

"They are people. Mi papi and I have sworn to protect the people of Miracle City." Manny growled at Alejandra. "How _dare_ you degrade my dad for protecting these people from that shadow monster."

La Cortina's eye twitched and her costume moved with her anger.

"Supervillains are _hardly_ people! They are criminals! THEY DESERVE A GRAVE!" She screamed. "How dare _YOU_ degrade _ME_ for taking all badness off of the streets!!"

"Calm down, Alejandra." White Pantera gestured for her to relax. "Why are you taking this so personally?"

La Cortina raked her teeth together.

"I _AM_ THE SHADOW CREATURE!" She exclaimed. Suddenly her costume shifted, swallowing up her face and distorting her appearance.

In a split second, Rodolfo, Frida, Manny and the supervillains were staring at the essence-sucking shadow that was plaguing Miracle City. La Cortina snarled as jaws dropped to the floor.

"HOLY FRIJOLES!" Grandpapi screamed, now realizing how much trouble he was in.

"I am _no_ monster, White Pantera!" La Cortina asserted voice was ghostly, echoed and distorted. Then her costume retreated off of her face and there was a menacing anger in her green eyes. "The only monsters I see are standing in this room."

Rodolfo shook off his shock and looked Alejandra in the eye.

"If you are the shadow creature, then your behavior toward supervillains has been very extreme, Alejandra." White Pantera hissed.

La Cortina frowned defiantly.

"Please, White Pantera. Their punishment was sealed. From Miracle City to Calavera, I took care of all criminals." She looked hungrily at the super-criminals hiding behind White Pantera and El Tigre.

"You took out Calavera? My grandson and my city?" General Chapuza growled, taking a step forward.

"You took grandmami Lady Gobbler from us?" Black Cuervo's eyes were filled with tears as her mother, Vulture glared at the living shadow.

"And mi papi from me?" Dr. Chipotle Jr. fought off a sob as he pointed his laser at the woman.

"And Mono Negra? We shall have our vengeance!" Comrade Chaos snarled.

The supervillains were ready to tear into La Cortina. Alejandra nodded.

"Calavera, Miracle City and every criminal and monster in between. I took out El Mal Verde last night just before the fight with the Moustache Mafia." She looked at White Pantera.

White Pantera looked angry.

"Alejandra, I forbid this!" Rodolfo swiped the air. Then he nervously eyed his father in the crazy woman's grasp. "There is other ways of justly taking care of criminals. You do not have to… kill them."

La Cortina held her eyes to her superhero idol.

"I do not KILL anything, Pantera." She returned, more and more hurt surfacing in her voice. "Taking quintessence is far different. No one dies but they do pay for their criminal ways. Supervillains cannot carry out any more badness if they are useless husks."

Her face was as straight as a pin and she never took her eyes off of White Pantera.

"But, still, there are other alternatives, Alejandra." Rodolfo argued, creeping forward. He was trying to keep her talking so that he could get Grandpapi out of her clutches.

"This _is_ the best way in dealing with evil people, White Pantera." La Cortina gestured desperately. Why was White Pantera so hard to convince? "You of all people should be applauding me. No more villains mean no more crime. Miracle City will be the city that you've always wanted. I'm-… I did this for you."

Everyone shuddered. Rodolfo stopped his subtle stalking and glared at her.

"That's enough! Do not blame this on me, Alejandra." He growled, stomping a foot. White Pantera felt anger bubbling inside of him. "You've shown yourself misguided, selfish and heartless. You've become what you were fighting so hard to get rid of… You've become a villain yourself."

Alejandra's jaw fell to the ground. Rodolfo was firm in his decision.

"I will no longer allow you to roam freely, Alejandra." He posed. "Now come quietly."

Shock was all over La Cortina's face as she stared at the superhero. Then… something snapped.

Alejandra roared as tentacles of blackness shot out from her back. The tentacles moved like black ribbons, shooting toward the villains in the room. The heroes went onto the defensive. Rodolfo managed to kick a few to the side and Manny took a few out with a slash of his El Tigre claws, but there was just too many of them. While some shoved El Tigre and White Pantera to the side and pinned them to the walls, more ribbons of darkness moved in for the villains. Rodolfo and Manny could only watch as La Cortina's tentacles struck the villains they were protecting.

The ribbons from La Cortina's long black costume struck each villain in the chest, passing though their bodies without a puncture mark. For a second, the villains fought the strange feelers that invaded their chests but it was no use. The icy tentacles pulsed, draining their essence. In a brief second it was all over. El Oso, Señor Siniestro, Black Cuervo, Vultura, Comrade Chaos and El Tarantula were dumped on the floor, eyes white and bodies limp. Surprisingly, Dr. Chipotle Jr. was holding his own, using his laser gun to blast away any tentacles that tried to suck out his essence.

"It's not gonna be _that_ easy you black moco!" The ten-year-old scientist growled, blowing away half a dozen of the ribbons of darkness. La Cortina narrowed her eyes at the little kid.

She commanded more tentacles toward the pint-sized supervillain. With a swat, Dr. Chipotle Jr. was on his back. Opening his scarlet eye, the ten-year-old saw several hungry tentacles hovering above him. He was done for.

"El Tigre!" Dr. Chipotle Jr. called out, his adolescent voice getting girlishly high. "Don't forget the guacamole!"

With that La Cortina's ribbons of darkness passed through the child's body, stealing his essence and leaving him a husk. Dropping the little mad scientist's limp body La Cortina called her ribbons of darkness back to her, releasing both heroes from being pinned against the walls. Then she glared down White Pantera.

"I am only trying to rid this city of villainy. Am I a villain to do that?" Alejandra asked eyes full of hurt as she called the tentacle holding Grandpapi closer to her.

With a clean gesture, La Cortina brought her hand up to the old man and passed a sharp, black finger through his chest. Grandpapi gave a short grunt of strain before he too had his essence stolen.

"GRANDPAPI!" Manny cried as Alejandra dropped the motionless elderly man to the floor.

Rodolfo and Manny snarled in rage as they charged at the wayward super. La Cortina glared them down as they flew toward her. At the last second, right before El Tigre could slice into her and White Pantera could kick her head off, Alejandra teleported behind them. Lashing out with a dark tentacle, La Cortina caught both and immobilized them. Bringing Rodolfo and Manny to her, Alejandra glared poison.

"I am merely executing justice on the unjust. As a bonus, my costume feeds on the quintessence, building more power so that I may take out the most powerful villain in Miracle City!" She gave an evil toothy grin. "Sartana of the Dead! Then I shall be _unstoppable_!"

La Cortina gave a loud, evil cackle as she tossed White Pantera and El Tigre across the room. The superheroes came to a rude stop on the back wall. Scrambling to their feet, they saw Alejandra spread her arms. Her costume moved over her face and arms, making wings of black matter. Without another word, La Cortina jumped into the air and flew high.

El Tigre raced after her, leaving his dad and Frida in their shock. Flying out of his house and putting all he had into his jump, the teen super opened his claws as he neared the villainous shadow. Manny nearly had a hold of La Cortina but then he lost momentum. The thirteen-year-old shot his El Tigre claw, desperately trying to get a hold of her. Alejandra narrowed her purple eyes as she saw the claw speeding for her. In a blast of black smoke, she teleported and Manny's hand grabbed empty air.

"NO!" He choked out as gravity pulled him back down to the ground.

Falling hard, Manny was once again in his rooftop home. Snarling yet tears burning his eyes, El Tigre fell to his knees and beat the ground with his fist.

"No. No. No. _No_! NO!" Manny shredded the floor with his claws. Then he took in a big breath and gave a tiger roar that shook the entire city.

With his energy depleted but his rage far from satisfied, Manny felt tears fall from his eyes. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking up he saw Frida.

"She- she took Grandpapi." Manny gulped. "She took his essence."

"That's enough mihijo!" White Pantera's voice cut through the grave silence. Manny looked up as his superhero father scooping Grandpapi into his arms. "We don't have time for grieving. We must catch Alejandra before she absorbs Sartana and becomes inescapable."

Manny gave a shaky nod as he gradually stood.

"Okay… Okay. We-… we need a plan." El Tigre stated, biting back tears.

"Okay. We need to go to Sartana's lair before Alejandra does and then we catch her and squeeze her until she barfs out all the essences!" Frida cheered. Rodolfo and Manny looked at her. "What?"

"That's not half bad Frida." Rodolfo stated as he set Grandpapi on the couch. "We must warn Sartana and fight Alejandra there!"

Manny growled.

"I'll rip her to shreds." He hissed, exposing his El Tigre claws. Rodolfo gave his son a sympathetic look.

"I think we only received a taste of her power. She said that her costume feeds on essence. Alejandra has taken out all supervillains, criminals and monsters in the city." White Pantera gulped. "There has to be a way we can tip the scales in our favor."

The room fell silent, but only for a second.

"Guacamole." El Tigre suddenly blurted out, then grabbed Frida by her shoulder and gave her a shake. "_Guacamole_! _THAT'S_ what Dr. Ancho Jr. meant!"

Frida gave her best friend a weird look.

"Dude, this is a bad time for chips and dip." The thirteen-year-old rocker chick voiced, patting Manny on the head.

"No!" Manny swatted her hand away. "Guacamole! Last night when we fought that shadow, some of Dr. Jalapeno Jr.'s acid guacamole spilled on her! The burn on her arm! That costume can't take acid!"

El Tigre slammed a fist into his hand.

"We _will_ get Grandpapi and the rest of the villains back. We need some acid guacamole." He stated, eyes cast toward the Miracle City docks and the Dr. Chipotle laboratory.

Meanwhile back at the Miracle City docks, a storm was rumbling inland from the ocean. Clouds heavy with rain and lightning choked out the bright morning sun. The Titanium Titan was seated in front of a television monitor. The image on the screen, like usual, was the Rivera family house, though the incoming video was cut off since the camera was destroyed. He sat casually, nonchalantly filing his liquid metal fingernails, expecting his new partner to come storming in. Sure enough, in a puff of black smoke, La Cortina appeared.

Her shoulders were raised, her teeth were raking together and her normally bright and energetic eyes were fogged over with anger.

"So…" The Titan blew on his fingernails. "How'd it go?"

Alejandra snarled and tipped over a chair with a black tentacle.

"White Pantera SHUNNED me!" The female super hissed, stalking toward the Titanium Titan. She lashed out with a tentacle and lifted the small ex-hero-sidekick clean off of his chair. "Why do you ask questions you all ready know the answers to?!"

La Cortina pointed to the monitor the Titan uses to spy on Rodolfo and his family. The Titanium Titan gave an easy shrug at the snowy screen.

"I lost visual after the camera was destroyed. But I did catch your conversation with Rodolfo." He replied. La Cortina huffed and dropped her new partner. "Stinks don't it?"

"What?" Alejandra barked, her green eyes narrowed at the Titan. He folded his liquid metal arms.

"Not being able to please White Pantera. Stings huh?" The Titanium Titan's face grew dark at the thought. La Cortina growled and spun on her heel.

"Why does he not see the logic though this?!" She snarled and rubbed her eyes. "No supervillains mean NO CRIME! Supervillains are lesser than people! Why waste time protecting them when you could do away with them _for good_?! White Pantera has gone _crackers_! Fifteen years ago he would have approved."

"I know." The Titanium Titan huffed. "But ever since he started a family, his superhero standards have vanished. White Pantera allows that idiot son and father of his to run around committing crime. He don't know what's good for the city anymore."

La Cortina sighed and turned back to the Titanium Titan.

"You're right, Titan." She voiced solemnly. "I should focus on what is important for the city, not White Pantera."

La Cortina cleaned her face with a smile as she sashayed up to the Titanium Titan.

"I have taken out all supervillains in Miracle City accept one." She ran her hand over the Titan's cheek and tickled his chin with her finger. "And this one is big. Can you guess which one I'm talking about, Titan?"

The Titanium Titan's mind blanked.

"Uh… uh… uh…" He stammered. La Cortina merely giggled.

"Sartana of the Dead." Alejandra stood, giving the Titanium Titan a sly grin. "Once the undead bone hag is taken out, our hero status will not be questioned. But… I need a super-macho ex-sidekick to help me out. You game, Titan?"

La Cortina winked at the short ex-sidekick. With delivery like that, what kind of chucklehead would say no?!

"Why do you ask questions you all ready know the answers to?" The Titan repeated bashfully. Alejandra smiled.

"That's what I wanted to hear, Titan." La Cortina looped her arms around him and giggled into his ear.

* * *

R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK!


	8. Luna Negra

Ohyaho everyone! CJzilla here with another update! In this chapter, things go downhill very fast and Alejandra does the unthinkable! Enjoy.

As I tear down this city, alls CJzilla has to roar is: R&R! Love on me... Hate on me... You know...

_KingOfTheLab: Aw! Thanks!_

_acosta perez jose ramiro: Cool. Glad you liked it._

_Moranofchaos2: Me likey the spicy. And as far as how short this fic is... Sometimes I feel like writing them longer, sometimes I don't but I can promise you that the finale will not disappoint!_

* * *

Chapter 8

_Luna Negra_

On the underbelly of Miracle City's worst part of town, a ghostly abandoned building stood within the ruins of an old prison cemetery. Though this cemetery had been forsaken and no longer used by the living, it was far from empty. Now the only residences of this haunted quarter were of the criminal undead and the only living that ever saw this barren place only met with an early demise. The huge iron door of the prison graveyard remained open, occasionally creaking with the breeze, daring anyone for a visit. From within the crumbling building, yellow lights pierced the foreboding red shadows constantly cast over this haunted area. Though the eerie wind hissed through the empty prison graveyard, faint guitar strumming could be heard.

Upon entering the abandoned building's front door, a visitor could be temporarily blinded by the brilliance of a limitless treasure simply dumped in the middle of the entry. But you'd have to be a total fool to start shoving gold coins and precious gems into your pockets. There was a ghastly owner to all this wealth; an owner that would rather say goodbye than hello.

Sartana of the Dead.

Seated on her giant throne, the supreme undead villainess of Miracle City strummed out a soft Latin rhythm on her Mystic Guitar. Surrounding their vicious and wicked master, just a portion of Sartana's undead army admired their mistress's guitar playing. Wiping away the occasional undead tear, the restless bone-bags that catered to Sartana's every whim enjoyed a lull in her never-ending battle with the living.

Sartana of the Dead abhorred the living and for the past two-hundred-years she has plotted to do away with them. Yet time after time her plans to wipe out the living had been thwarted. The latest thorns in her side: the Rivera men, El Tigre, White Pantera and Puma Loco. All three had crossed her at one point or another, tearing countless victories out from under her undead feet.

How she hated them, and how she didn't see _this_ comin'!

A loud boom shook the ghostly cemetery as the front door fell in, a cloud of old dust blowing through the entry. Sartana recognized that sound. She knew that the Riveras had come to pay her a visit, since no one else was stupid enough to do so. Looking up from her Mystic Guitar, Sartana's scarlet sombrero revealed dangerous crimson eyes that came to the intruders of her home. White Pantera and El Tigre stood at the threshold of the building, posing, as usual. She seethed.

"RIVERAS! How _dare_ you disturb me!" Sartana stood from her throne and raised her hand to strum her black magic guitar. She would blast El Tigre and White Pantera to an early grave!

"_Sartana of the Dead_!" White Pantera bellowed. "We have come to-… protect _you_!"

Sartana's hand came down on her guitar when she heard the tail-end of White Pantera's sentence. Not believing her undead ears, the skeleton lady gave the two supers a funny look as she struck a sour note on her Mystic Guitar.

"Hola Sartana!" Then the little Frida Suárez girl popped out from behind El Tigre, waving like the undead villainess was an old friend.

Now Sartana was really stumped.

"Qué?" Was the only thing to pop out of Sartana's undead mouth. She twisted a bony finger in her nonexistent ear, thinking she didn't hear them right. "All right, I probably didn't hear you heroes right. What?"

White Pantera and El Tigre came zipping up to the undead villainess.

"We are here to protect you!" The thirteen-year-old hero threw his hands in the air. Sartana was taken aback by their willing nearness and flopped back down in her chair.

"Sartana, have you seen a living shadow with purple eyes and tentacles?" White Pantera set his hands on her wrists, bracing her to her armrests and looked her firmly in the undead eyes.

"Or a strange woman with big green eyes, fluffy brown hair and a weird ring on her right hand?" El Tigre rattled off.

Sartana stared at the two Riveras like they'd just punch themselves.

"Has… a… living… SHADOW… or… a… chick… with… GREEN… eyes… come… to… BUG… you?" Frida Suárez said slowly and loudly to Sartana. "Comprende?"

"We must know right away, Sartana. The fate of Miracle City depends upon it!" White Pantera was intense.

Sartana blinked before she leaned back into her chair.

"Okay. Now I'm really creeped out." The skeleton lady was getting uncomfortable. With a gesture, she pulled her wrists from Rodolfo's grasp, leaving her skeleton hands in his.

White Pantera stood, took a step back and handed her back her… hands.

"I don't know what's in the water, but you three are acting loco!" Sartana asserted, standing from her chair. "A Rivera in my domain is a _dead man_!"

She retrieved her Mystic Guitar and pointed it point-blank at White Pantera's throat, shooting him a threatening smile that would make any of her skeleton banditos crumble with fear. To her utter surprise, the man sighed impatiently and pushed the neck of her guitar from his gullet.

"Please, Sartana!" White Pantera tapped a foot, his Bronze Boots of Truth chiming as they drummed on the mound of treasure under him. "Answer our question!"

Again the two-hundred-year-old skeleton lady blinked before she finally dropped her aim.

"I don't know why it is so important to you chicken crazies, but NO! I have _not_ seen another living person." Sartana pouted since her fear-factor was not working. "The only strange people to visit me all week are you three!"

Frida, White Pantera and El Tigre breathed a sigh of relief.

"Good. Just us strange people." Frida wiped her forehead.

Sartana could only stare silently and shake her head at the three breathing beings in front of her. First barging in on her unprovoked and then _not_ wanting a fight?! Instead, they were questioning her if she'd been visited by some shadow or woman or whatever.

"You three are making me uncomfortable." The two-hundred-year-old skeleton lady narrowed her eyes, taking a step away from them.

White Pantera, El Tigre and Frida stepped with her.

"Sartana." Little Manny Rivera puffed out his chest. "You are in grave danger. A shadow monster by the name of La Cortina is wiping out all criminals and supervillains from Miracle City and now she is after YOU! If she sucks out your essence, she will be unstoppable! We CANNOT let that happen!"

Sartana glanced between the three living people in front of her and her skeleton banditos. Then she and her undead minions nearly crumbled to the ground in a fit of hysterical laughter. El Tigre frowned as Sartana kept on laughing. After several long seconds of laughter, Sartana stood straight and wiped laughter tears out of her crimson eyes.

"Oh! Gracias! I haven't laughed like that since I was among the living." The wave of chuckles died down and the two-hundred-year-old skeleton lady cleared her throat. "FOOL! I am Sartana of the Dead! I am the mightiest of all Miracle City supervillains! I fear _NOTHING_!"

White Pantera stepped forward.

"Sartana, please. This shadow monster is unlike anything you've seen before." He grabbed her hand, reinforcing his point. "And when this thing comes, it will attack without mercy and steal your essence!"

Sartana suddenly giggled, her pale skull flushing with pink.

"Aw, Pantera. I didn't know you cared." The skeleton cooed. Rodolfo sighed, seeing his words not sinking into her white skull.

"If it drains _you_, there will be no stopping it." He pointed a finger in her face. Still, Sartana was indignant.

The two-hundred-year-old bone hag scoffed, waving off the notion like it was a fly and folded her bony arms.

"Please. I've pulled scarier things from my undead nose." She pointed to her nose. "Your worrying is pointless. If I've proved anything, it's that Sartana of the Dead is _not_ one to mess with! I will send this shadow-thing running."

"She does have a point, Mr. Rivera." Frida pointed out. "The boogers Sartana pulls from her skeleton nose probably are more powerful than La Cortina… Maybe?"

White Pantera shook his head.

"We underestimated Alejandra once and Grandpapi paid the heavy price." His brown eyes fell momentarily. Then he looked up at Sartana with renewed determination. "La Cortina will not strike again. We've come to warn and protect you Sartana."

The tiny skulls of Sartana's sombrero rattled as she shook her undead head.

"This is a _trick_! The day a superhero protects a supervillain is the day I grow skin!" She then ran her finger over her bony arm and chuckled. "As you can see, that's a long way off."

With that Sartana pulled her Mystic Guitar from her side and pointed it at her three trespassers.

"Now, kindly kiss your fleshy butts goodbye as I play you a song to die for." Cackling evilly, the undead skeleton villainess curved one of her sharp, bony fingers around a guitar string. To her surprise, her uninvited guests had had enough of her villainous fury.

Frida leaned forward and gave Sartana a firm slap to her nose. Shocked yet totally hurt at the quick slap, the two-hundred-year-old skeleton lady clapped her hands over her stinging nose.

"Thank you, Frida." White Pantera nodded in approval at the little thirteen-year-old rocker. Frida smiled.

"I was getting tired of her "I will call down the evil souls of my bandito army" tantrum." The blue-haired girl set her hands on her tiny hips. Sartana gave the three a bewildered look.

"Sartana, this is no trick and we are not joking." Manny tried to reason with Sartana. "We are _SERIOUS_! Now stop your evil shenanigans and get ready for La Cortina!"

Just as those words left El Tigre's mouth, something snatched his feet out from under him.

"Hey-!" He blurted out as he was being dragged through the mounds of gold coins and jewels. Manny twisted and exposed his El Tigre claws, ready to swipe at what was on his ankle.

All of a sudden, he was looking into the crazy red eyes of the Titanium Titan. The small ex-side-kick couldn't hold in a vengeful smile he pulled El Tigre away from Frida and White Pantera via a liquid metal rope.

"Hola El Tigre." The Titan cackled, his liquid metal arms forming a giant boa constrictor and wrapping tightly around the teen hero. "So nice of you to _SQUEEZE_ me in!"

White Pantera and Frida gasped as the unstable ex-sidekick gave El Tigre a liberal squeeze.

"The Titanium Titan!" Rodolfo bit down on his fingernails.

"Wait… Didn't La Cortina say she took out all villains accept Sartana?" Frida questioned, her tiny attention span elsewhere as she seemed oblivious to Manny being in the Titan's grasp. "Then why isn't the Titan shadow-food?"

"Because he is no villain." A ghostly voice rang out of nowhere. At the threshold of Sartana's lair, the shadows began to shift and gather until they formed a silhouette.

Stepping before everyone was La Cortina, her purple eyes narrowed spitefully. Alejandra's costume retreated from her face and she glared down White Pantera. Frida's mouth was on the floor.

"The Titan? _NOT_ a villain?! You've gone completely _**CRAZY**_!" The thirteen-year-old girl exclaimed. Rodolfo's attention was no longer on La Cortina but on the Titanium Titan squeezing his son.

"Titan! _Release my son_!" White Pantera fumed racing for his unhinged ex-sidekick. The superhero came on the Titanium Titan so fast, he didn't have time to react.

El Tigre, the Titanium Titan and White Pantera crashed to the ground, gold coins and jewels flying in every direction. Punches where thrown but it was the Titan who came out on top. Using his nimble liquid metal arms, the crazy ex-sidekick left blobs of metal around Rodolfo's Bronze Boots of Truth and Manny's El Tigre claws. Their mystical objects that gave them their superpowers were immobilized and they were easily slammed against the thick stone wall. The Titan lashed out, grabbing old shackles hanging from the wall. Shackling Rodolfo's wrists and Manny's ankles, both superheroes were incapacitated so fast, it made the room spin.

Reality only hit when La Cortina walked up to the Titanium Titan and glared daggers at the bound White Pantera. The shadow super then looked down at the Titan and gave him an awed smile.

"Wow. That was impressive, Titan." She looped her arm over his shoulder and cupped his chin with her other hand. The Titanium Titan gave a smitten chuckle before he took her into his arms and dipped her.

"Gracias mi amore." The Titan cooed. La Cortina giggled but Manny gagged.

"Oh _GROSS_!" The thirteen-year-old hero heaved. "I-I-… I'm gonna hurl!"

The Titan's teeth grated together, another moment ruined by that pain-in-the-neck Manny Rivera. The ex-sidekick let his woman stand but he made a fist at El Tigre.

"Drop dead El Tigre!" The Titanium Titan blasted.

"You first, _crazy_!" Manny returned. The Titan seethed, the petty insults of a thirteen-year-old sinking under his skin.

La Cortina put a hand on her partner's shoulder, encouraging him to shake off the comment.

"I agree with my son." They both heard White Pantera state. Both La Cortina and the Titanium Titan looked up at the superhero.

Rodolfo looked nauseated.

"Alejandra, why are you running with the Titanium Titan? And why haven't you drained him of essence yet? He is a villain." The superhero questioned, eyebrow raised high in the air.

Alejandra grew angry.

"The Titan is not a villain!" She barked back then hugged the Titanium Titan. "He is the only one who supports me! He is the only one who sees the clear reasoning in getting rid of all supervillains once and for all."

Manny gagged again, his donut from earlier threatening to come up.

"That makes sense, since both of you are _off_ of your ROCKER!" Frida yelled over to La Cortina and the Titan. Both whirled around to the girl and glared angrily. "What? Insults come so naturally around you two!"

Frida gave a nervous smile as she waved, making a note to zip her lip... for as long as she could. La Cortina huffed at the girl and folded her arms as she turned back to her superhero idol.

"What are you doing here, White Pantera?" She questioned point-blankly. Rodolfo stared at her like she'd grown another head.

"What am _I_ doing?! What are YOU doing?!" White Pantera squirmed, trying to kick his feet free from the Titan's liquid metal bonds. La Cortina snorted.

"I asked you first." Alejandra stuck her nose in the air. Rodolfo sighed.

"I am here to warn Sartana of the Dead and prevent you from taking her essence. Now release me and leave my son alone!" White Pantera barked back.

La Cortina's green eyes went beady but she squinted dangerously. Then Alejandra made a fist.

"You still don't see the logic in my plan to wipe out all supervillains from Miracle City?!" She was shocked. "White Pantera, LOOK! Look at who you're defending!"

The shadow super gestured toward the undead bone hag that was watching them curiously.

"Sartana of the Dead! She is the worst supervillain in all of Miracle City! And possibly the world!" La Cortina barked. Sartana giggled.

"Thank you for the compliment!" The undead villainess called back. Alejandra slapped her forehead.

La Cortina cleared her throat.

"As I was saying… THE WORLD!" She gestured. "Have you really gone that far downhill to think that you can DEFEND such an evil creature?!"

Alejandra stood rigid as she awaited White Pantera's reply. The superhero's brown eyes bore through hers and she could clearly see the resoluteness.

"Sartana _is_ evil and if I allow you to drain her essence, Alejandra… will you do the same with supervillains everywhere?" White Pantera questioned carefully. Manny was shocked.

"DAD! Don't! Think of all of what she's done!" The thirteen-year-old was hanging upside-down by his ankles while his hands were stuck together. Alejandra smiled, finally seeing her thinking opening up into White Pantera's mind.

"_Yes_! It's what they deserve! _Finally_, White Pantera! You see my reason-!" But La Cortina was cut off by the seething look in Rodolfo's eyes.

"You'd do away with people who have friends and families?" He hissed, fists tightening. Alejandra's mouth flapped open like a gasping fish.

"B-b-but they're evil, Pantera! I-!" She tried to defend her thinking.

Rodolfo gritted his teeth.

"They are PEOPLE! With friends and families! Dr. Chipotle Sr. had family, a SON! As did many of those villains, including my father." White Pantera narrowed his eyes at his super-fan. "You've taken away people that were evil but innocent. To me, _you_ are supremely wicked and a greater threat than Sartana is."

La Cortina gasped and stumbled backwards.

"You-… You don't mean that!" She grabbed her chest. Rodolfo glared her in the eye.

"I do. Your mind is twisted and your ways are extreme and heartless and not befit of a hero." White Pantera spoke in a clear, resolute voice. Then he looked away from her, showing that Alejandra had lost all of his approval.

La Cortina gasped again, her face paling as she stumbled back.

"No! No! _No_!" She buried her face in her hands as she reeled violently. La Cortina's costume writhed with her devastating emotions. "I-… I _am_ a hero! I'm _not_-… I'm not a-a-a… a villain! **NO**!"

Alejandra fell to her knees. Her costume squirmed, rising from her body and consuming her form. This happened over and over until La Cortina slammed her hands on the ground and took handfuls of gold coins. The precious metal bent under her fists as she clinched the coins between her fingers.

"Ale-Alejandra?" The Titanium Titan questioned, carefully nearing his distraught partner. La Cortina took in very shaky breaths and he saw black, inky tears falling from her eyes. "Alejandra?"

Her shoulders quivered with a silent sob. Finally she began to stand. Bringing her face upwards, you didn't have to be an expert to know something was very wrong. Alejandra's green eyes were glazed over with reckless pain. Big, gooey but black tears fell over her face. She closed her eyes as a sob died in her throat. Alejandra raised her arm to which her costume formed a giant lance.

With a grunt of despair and effort, La Cortina shot her costume forward, the black spear screaming straight for White Pantera. Rodolfo flinched, sure that the javelin of darkness would spear him. But nothing happened. Peeking open his eyes, White Pantera was surprised to see the sharp tip of La Cortina's lance of black nearly inside his chest. Bringing his eyes up to Alejandra, Rodolfo could see he was spared… momentarily.

La Cortina was obviously destroyed by his judgment and denunciation. She locked eyes with him, her arm extended and tears still pouring from her devastated eyes.

"All I ever wanted was your approval White Pantera. I just wanted to please you and to show you I can be a hero, not just a goofy fan-girl." Alejandra's face twisted with a sob. "How could you have come to hate me so? Why am I not good enough?"

Rodolfo softened.

"Alejandra. Deep down you know that this is wrong and you know that these measures are not proper of a true hero." He returned. "Stop now and cause no more hurt."

La Cortina trembled and a soft sob escaped her quivering lips.

"This is the last thing that I wanted, Pantera." She shuddered. But she didn't drop her aim.

Alejandra suddenly thrust her arm and her spear of darkness flew forward. Rodolfo gave a wet gasp as Manny felt the wall shake with the force of the blow.

"DAD!" Manny cried, looking upwards. To his horror, La Cortina's shadow spear had pierced his father's chest, sinking deep and into the wall. "NO! NOT MI PAPI!"

White Pantera's face twisted with the pain, but he was still conscious. Bringing his eyes back up to Alejandra, Rodolfo looked at her with surprised eyes.

"If cleansing all badness from the world makes me a villain… then so be it." Her voice was ice cold as her costume moved over her face. Her purple eyes remained on White Pantera's. Then her tentacle twitched… and sucked out Rodolfo's essence.

The superhero fell limp in his shackles.

"DAD! NO! NO!" Manny writhed in his restraints. "**YOU MONSTER**!"

Alejandra held cool eyes to the teen's before she pulled back her arm. Her tentacle had penetrated the stone wall and when she tugged her arm from it, the wall caved in. El Tigre had no chance of escape. He was buried under a ton of rubble.

"MANNY!" Frida screamed as a wave of dust covered the room. A pair of purple eyes cut through the haze.

As the dust settled, Frida ran toward the pile of rubble Manny was buried under. Ignoring and pushing past La Cortina and the Titanium Titan, the little thirteen-year-old girl began hauling stones from the pile, desperately trying to save her friend. Alejandra and the Titan watched Frida in her futile clamor for the teen hero and for a second, it plucked a heart string. But then the moment was interrupted by loud clapping. Turning around, La Cortina and the Titanium Titan saw Sartana of the Dead slowly applauding them, her jagged teeth spread in a smile.

"Very good. Muy, muy bueno." The villainess clapped, her crimson undead eyes soft with approval. "In just a few seconds of rage rid me of two headaches that have been plaguing me for years now. Well done, La Cortina."

The shadow super narrowed her purple eyes as she made fists. Sartana wasn't done yet.

"Welcome to the dark side, my dear." The undead skeleton lady smiled greedily.

La Cortina had just taken out her superhero idol, the very man that inspired her to fight crime and his innocent son. Alejandra had become what she struggled so hard to fight. She was a villain now.

* * *

R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK!


	9. Traeme Paz

Ohayho Tokyo! Konnici wa London! Konbanwa New York. CJzilla here with another update. (Sorry it took me so long. I injured my hand at work and typing has been difficult and slow for me. Also, sorry for the short chapter.) In this chapter you will see that Manny is next on the chopping block. Enjoy.

As I tear down this city with my radioactive breath, alls CJzilla has to roar is this: R&R! Love on me... Hate on me... I don't care.

_KnucklesRedFury207.2: Relax and pick your heart off of the floor. No one's gone forever._

_KingOfTheLab: It's gonna get scarier._

_acosta perez jose ramiro: Maybe; but not if Manny has anything to say about it... Thanks!_

_Moranofchaos2: Sartana is awesome. Let's see how long La Cortina can keep it together._

* * *

Chapter 9

_Traeme Paz_

La Cortina spun and watched Frida Suárez dig for the little Rivera boy. Something was so humorous yet totally heart-wrenching as the thirteen-year-old made little headway, trying to save her friend; the son of White Pantera who she'd just buried.

"Feels good, no?" Sartana of the Dead stated amusement in her undead voice. La Cortina turned and glared at the skeleton lady. "Feels good to break a couple rules and finally shut White Pantera up."

The shadow super didn't answer but Sartana still laughed.

"There is much evil in you, girl. Come, join me and we will rule this world." The villainess stretched out her bony hand, offering La Cortina untold power and mastery over the dead.

La Cortina further narrowed her squinting purple eyes.

"I've vowed to take out all villains from Miracle City, Sartana." She stretched out an arm, her inky black costume forming long claws over her fingers. "That includes you."

That merited a loud laugh out of the undead super-villainess.

"Take _me_ out?! _Sartana of the Dead_?! Yeah, right." Sartana mocked, gesturing for herself. Then she slowly retrieved her Mystic Guitar. "Many have tried and none have succeeded! You shall be just another."

Both stared each other down, weapons poised to strike.

"Last chance, La Cortina; join me or die." The two-hundred-year-old skeleton villainess grinned smugly.

"Drop dead, Sartana." La Cortina simply stated. Sartana smiled.

"Just the answer I wanted to hear." The skeleton lady brought her hand down over her guitar. Her banditos replied to her call. "Banditos! End them!"

Rows and rows of skeleton soldiers heeded their mistress's call. La Cortina growled and made a fist, but then she felt a hand on hers. It was the Titanium Titan.

"I'll take care of these. You get Sartana." The ex-sidekick told his partner. Now La Cortina was glad she partnered up with the short and crazy man.

She smiled at the Titan, even though you couldn't see past her inky costume, and nodded. The Titanium Titan formed long, razor-sharp tentacles with his liquid metal arms.

"Who wants to die, _again_?" He jeered at the small army of undead banditos in front of him. The random skeleton hand went into the air.

Swinging his blades forward and to the sides, the Titan cleared a path for La Cortina. Spotting Sartana at the back of the building, La Cortina zipped toward her. Sartana raised her Mystic Guitar as her opponent raised her claws. The two met with a violent fight.

Meanwhile Frida had surprising dug a hole through the rubble. Pushing the heavy stones to the side, she finally saw part of Manny's shirt. Covered in dust, the little thirteen-year-old girl kept on excavating for her best friend.

"Manny! Manny!" With a big shove, Frida pushed a large stone from off of her friend. Though he was dirty with rubble and debris, the teen hero looked fine.

Taking a hold of his arm, Frida pulled Manny halfway out of the broken wall.

"Manny! Are you all right?" She rushed, snapping a finger in front of his face. Manny's eyes flew open.

"Frida! You're all right!" He smiled. The blue-haired rocker scoffed, wiping a smudge of dirt off of her cheek.

"It'll take a lot more than a black moco, a tiny ex-sidekick and a bag of bones to get rid of me." Frida gave him a mischievous grin. But when her eyes came to his hands, still encased in the Titan's liquid metal bonds, her face fell. "How are we going to get you out?"

The teen hero narrowed his eyes, anger over his grandfather and his dad bubbling into his throat. With one fast move, Manny unsheathed his claws. The razor-sharp and powerful metal claws busted through the liquid metal and with a flex of his muscles, Manny was free. Leaning down to his ankles, he swiped the shackles off of his feet. El Tigre was free.

Standing from the fallen wall, the thirteen-year-old superhero gritted his teeth. He saw the Titanium Titan knocking around Sartana's skeleton banditos and La Cortina dueling with the undead villainess. Manny's blood boiled when he saw Alejandra. He wouldn't take her any longer! He'd lost so much at her hands!

"Manny! You can kick her butt in a minuet. We still have to get your dad outta here!" Frida's voice pulled Manny out of his dark thoughts. The teen hero jumped to his best friend's side and the two of them began digging out White Pantera.

Sartana fired a blast of black magic at La Cortina. The shadow super effortlessly avoided the blast and advanced on the skeleton lady. Sartana was starting to get angry. La Cortina was not going quietly. How she hated the living!

The two-hundred-year-old skeleton strummed on her Mystic Guitar, reviving more of her banditos. Undead soldiers busted through the floor, scattering gold coins and jewels in all directions. The banditos stood to defend their mistress. La Cortina's eyes purple eyes narrowed. The skeleton pounced, burying the shadow super under their rotting carcasses. Sartana laughed as she watched La Cortina get swallowed up by her soldiers. The undead skeleton lady neared the pile of banditos, satisfied that her irritating opponent was finished. But then something shook the coins under her feet. Looking down, Sartana saw those purple eyes and dark dagger too late.

Manny and Frida had just pulled Rodolfo out of the fallen wall when they heard a weird noise from Sartana. Turning, both teens were terror-stuck when they saw Sartana impaled on La Cortina's dark tentacle.

"No!" Manny hissed.

Sartana's undead face was plastered with shock as her crimson eyes went from La Cortina to the black dagger skewered through her stomach. The shadow super had moved under the banditos and ambushed the undead villain from the treasure under her feet.

"Okay, I didn't see this coming." The two-hundred-year-old skeleton woman blinked. La Cortina merely narrowed her eyes.

"Adios Sartana." The shadow super voiced. Her tentacle shook, absorbing Sartana's essence.

The undead skeleton villainess crumpled to the ground in a lifeless pile of bones, her Mystical Guitar clanking uselessly to the side. La Cortina fell to her knees, Sartana's essence and power coursing through her body.

"NO!" Manny gave a tiger roar. La Cortina looked up too late.

El Tigre gave the shadow fiend a powerful slash with his claws. La Cortina reeled with the slice but Manny went right on striking. Slice after slice, gash after gash, he tore away at Alejandra's inky alien costume. Manny wasn't thinking clearly, grief and desperation were clouding his mind and he didn't see the Titanium Titan take him from behind. Liquid metal encircled the teen hero, pinning his wrists and ankles together and hoisting him into the air.

"Look; I got myself an El Tigre piñata." The Titan smirked, forming a giant spiked bat with his free arm. But before he could beat the candy out of Manny, La Cortina gave a moan.

Looking over to his partner, the Titanium Titan watched La Cortina's costume flux and writhe as she stood. She moaned in pain, pieces of her costume hanging in ribbons where Manny had sliced. La Cortina growled at the thirteen-year-old super as she stepped toward him.

"Brat!" She spat and grabbed his head in her cold hand.

Manny snarled, tears burning his nose.

"DIRTBAG! You took my father! He was a hero!" El Tigre growled, writhing in the Titanium Titan's grasp. "And he was right! YOU _ARE_ NO BETTER THAN A VILLAIN!"

Manny heard La Cortina rake her teeth together and then she began tightening her grip on his head.

"I _am_ a hero, El Tigre." She snarled. "But the Titan is right; White Pantera was around such an unruly family that their debased ways rubbed off on him. He didn't know what was good for Miracle City anymore, but I do. I've proven it."

La Cortina released the boy's head, a grin over her pale face. Then her costume moved over her head and a laugh was heard.

"I've taken out all villains including Sartana of the Dead!" Her purple eyes began to fade into crimson. The shadowy super laughed in disbelief as she stumbled back. "_Sartana of the Dead_! _I_ did it! I did what White Pantera and countless other supers dreamed of doing! Her essence is MINE!"

She suddenly laughed violently and fell backwards into a pile of gold coins. La Cortina chuckled, then giggled, then laughed and then guffawed until the entire room shook with her laughter. The Titanium Titan and El Tigre glanced at each other. For a "hero" she has a good evil laugh. Finally, her laughter died down.

"Uh… Alejandra? Mi amore, are you all right?" The Titan questioned in concern. A quiet yet sinister chuckle was heard.

"I feel it… I feel the power…" La Cortina slowly sat up then stood. She stumbled briefly but found her balance. "It's-… it's beautiful, Titan. The power is beautiful."

The shadowy super's eyes were full-on crimson, beaming with the same undead power of Sartana's. The inky costume bled from Alejandra's face and showed just how intense her power was.

"_No one_ shall question my hero status ever… _again_." La Cortina smirked. Manny squirmed.

"You're nothing but a _worthless evil monster_!" El Tigre blasted back. "You're not a true hero and you'll _never_ be one!"

La Cortina growled as the Titan smiled at the teen's useless fighting. She moved up to the thirteen-year-old boy and glared at him.

"You're your father's son. No matter how much I did, it was never good enough for White Pantera." She hissed. "But now that your city is crime free, is that all you have to say El Tigre?"

The shadow super formed her arm into a dark spear and pointed it threateningly at the boy. Manny wasn't moving, tears falling from his green eyes.

"You've taken out my Grandpapi and my father." The thirteen-year-old smoldered. "What's next? MORE innocent people? You won't stop taking essences; we've all seen that tonight! You're a supervillain and so help me… I _WILL_ STOP YOU!"

La Cortina narrowed her eyes at the boy as shadow tentacles rose from her costume.

"Nothing will stop me now, boy." She growled. Her tentacles of darkness hovered hungrily before her. "I now have the power to make my dreams come true! I have the strength of El Mal Verde, intelligence of Dr. Chipotle and fierceness of General Chapuza… I control the dead… I control Sartana's bandito army."

She waved her hand. The banditos beaten and/or torn apart assembled and stood before their new mistress.

"This will still be so, that I will wipe out all evil from this world!" La Cortina voiced. "And _never mind_ how high the cost may grow!"

Alejandra cackled again.

"Oh. This is fantastic… How did I survive without such power?" It was more of a rhetorical question. La Cortina felt her hands tingling with energy as she smiled at The Titanium Titan. "I promised you Manny Rivera, mi amore. He's all yours."

The Titan smiled evilly.

"Gracias Alejandra." Then he formed his free hand into a cheese grater and gave Manny a malicious smile. La Cortina gave a pleased giggle.

"Okay, you two have fun!" The shadow super waved. The Titanium Titan cocked a brow at his partner.

"And where are you going?" He asked, eyebrows high into the air. La Cortina giggled.

"Oh, I'm going to search Miracle City for more crime." She swatted the air like it was no big deal. The Titan and Manny glanced at each other.

"But uh… didn't you say all of the criminals and villains are gong?" The ex-sidekick asked. Suddenly a fire in La Cortina's eyes that wasn't there a minuet ago.

"Yes! But there HAS to be more badness in this city! There HAS TO!" She started to twitch. "I will hunt down all litter bugs, J-walkers, people who double-park and who keep their movies too long! I will use my new powers to sweep the city! ALL EVIL-DOERS WILL KNOW THE NAME OF LA CORTINA!"

She cackled crazily before her costume covered her face again. Now a living shadow, La Cortina did something unexpected. She grew.

With the aid of Sartana's limitless power, suddenly La Cortina's shadowy form expanded and began to fill the room. The old building could no longer hold the giant shadow and in an explosion of dust and stone blocks, it was leveled. Towering high above rooftops, the shadow super eyed the city before her greedily. The shadow super then gave a shriek that shook buildings to their foundation.

Only then did the residents of Miracle City realize that the noonday sun was completely blocked by a huge, menacing shadow monster. La Cortina's monstrous form simply hovered over the city and it sent all humans into a violent hysteria. Throngs of screaming people fled in every direction, screaming wildly in panic. With a raise of her huge hand, the shadow monster summoned hundreds of skeleton banditos. Rising from the ground, each maggot-filled skeleton stood and awaited their orders. With another gesture of her hand, La Cortina ordered her undead troops into Miracle City; commanding a full-on assault on the populace.

El Tigre and the Titanium Titan were awestruck as they watched the monster shadow move away from the prison graveyard and out into the city.

"Wow. She's as much of a hero as I am a lady." Manny's voice brought the Titan out of his staring.

"Shut up! You're next!" The Titanium Titan transformed his metal arm into a giant ball of spikes and smiled again. "You don't know how long I've waited for this, El Tigre."

The Titan eased back his arm, ready to smash Manny into a thick paste. Then a gold coin rocked through the air and hit him upside the head. It wasn't the stinging pain that was supremely annoying, it was the insulting comment that followed.

"Oye Titan!" It was that little Suárez girl. "How's it feel ugly AND stupid?!"

The Titanium Titan spun on his heel and managed to see the thirteen-year-old girl load handfuls of coins into her red goggles. Pulling back the elastic strap as far as it would go, Frida used her goggles like a slingshot, shooting dozens of coins at the ex-sidekick. Making a mental note to pummel the little rocker chick, the Titan held up his free hand to block some of the coins from peppering his face.

Frida was doing a good job of annoying the evil ex-sidekick but she wasn't having much luck getting Manny out of his grasp. Then she spotted a HUGE ruby next to her. Bending over, she found that it was a lot heavier than it looked. Straining Frida fought to get the huge precious stone off of the floor. The Titanium Titan noticed that the onslaught of gold coins had stopped. Taking his hand from his face, he saw that the little girl was trying, in vain, to pick a large ruby up from the floor. Growling in anger, the ex-sidekick stalked over to the little girl; he'd enjoy breaking those accursed goggles in front of her.

At the moment the Titan was almost on her, Frida finally lifted the hefty rock off of the floor. But then she slipped and the ruby fell back onto the floor. Instead of being very useless, the huge ruby fell on a large golden scepter that was buried under the gold coins. The golden rod shot up from its hiding placed and beaned the Titan in the crotch.

Manny and all the skeleton banditos in the room winched violently and gave the sympathetic "_Oooooh_"s. The instant the searing pain registered, the Titanium Titan crumbled to the ground. He was in too much pain to scream in agony but he did manage was a squeak of surprise.

At the moment the Titanium Titan hit the ground, his grip on Manny loosened. Seeing his window for freedom, El Tigre flexed his muscles and wriggled out of the Titan's hand.

"Thanks Frida." Manny nodded at his best friend. Frida shrugged.

"Now that's what I call family jewels!" She cheered, hands thrown into the air.

As she was celebrating, a razor-sharp finger-bone shot through the air and snipped off a chunk of her blue hair. Manny spun and saw a small army of skeleton banditos step toward them.

"_Eeek_… _After them_!" The Titanium Titan peeped, his voice hitting an octave not _normally_ possible. The skeletons obeyed and began to move slowly toward the two children.

Grabbing Frida by her hand, Manny raced for cover. They took shelter behind half of a wall outside the decimated prison building.

"Whoa! We've got _no chance_ against a whole _army_ of skeletons!" Frida quivered. El Tigre peeked out from their hiding place and looked over to the undead army heading their way.

"I know. We've got to take out La Cortina and reverse this nightmare." Manny voiced watching the undead banditos, ever so slowly, follow them. Frida gulped as she watched how intense her normally fun-loving prankster friend had gotten. "Frida. We need our secret weapon."

Frida gasped.

"You mean-…?!" She paused. Manny looked back at her with resolute green eyes.

"I'll keep La Cortina and her lackeys busy. You bring it here!" The thirteen-year-old rocker slowly nodded, then looked at Manny funny.

"What about your dad?" She threw her thumb over her shoulder to White Pantera lying next to them.

"How'd he get out here?" Manny questioned. Frida put her arm around Rodolfo's limp body.

"I moved him!" She beamed. Then she moved Rodolfo's lips and threw her voice. ""I should hold off on the frijoles because I'm heavy!""

Manny gave his friend a crazy look and then sighed.

"Fine. Get our weapon here and keep my dad's body safe." The thirteen-year-old hero stood and exposed his claws. "I've got a supervillain to stop."

He took a step out into the open when his friend stopped him.

"Manny!" Frida pleaded. Manny cocked a brow at the scared look on the girl's face. "Just-… Just be careful. I don't want La Cortina to suck out your essence too."

El Tigre gave his friend an easy smile.

"No tengo miedo, amiga." Then he shot out of his hiding place and faced down the small army of skeleton banditos. Filling his lungs with air, Manny gave a loud tiger roar, commencing his battle.

* * *

R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK!


	10. Pistolero

Ohayho Tokyo! Konnichi wa London! Konbanwa New York! CJzilla here with another update. In this chapter Manny runs from a fight but confronts La Cortina! (Gasp) Enjoy.

As I tear down this city, alls CJzilla has to roar is this: R&R! Love on me... Hate on me... You know this by now.

_KingOfTheLab: Bring on the scary! It is a horror fic anyway... What was I saying?_

_KnucklesRedFury207.2: Manny's not gonna snap!... At least, not yet..._

_CardcaptorKatara: Frida ALWAYS has time for insults and fun! She's fun to write. Manny has seen a lot of tradgey and now he has nothing to lose. Watch out La Cortina._

_acosta perez jose ramiro: (CJzilla falls out of her chair, laughing hysterically) Dude! Thanks for pointing out the Spanish grammar mistake. I laugh because I SHOULD have known that... Oh well, I corrected it._

_Moranofchaos2: I like the Titanium Titan and I always hurt those whom I adore. Poor Titan. You think he tasted that golden scepter? (CJzilla giggles)_

* * *

Chapter 10

_Pistolero_

The Titanium Titan was getting helped to his feet by two skeleton banditos. Since getting a hit from a golden scepter in his tender areas, the ex-sidekick could barely stand let alone think. What was the rush anyway? The undead soldiers could easily hunt down Manny Rivera and his friend. After all, they were just scared and confused little children, running from the battlefield. Easy pickings.

Suddenly the Titanium Titan heard a loud tiger roar before he saw a dozen skeleton banditos blown into pieces. Standing in the cloudy noonday sun was El Tigre. The Titan managed an amused giggle.

"You're more stupido than I thought, El Tigre." His voice was still high from getting hit in the-… uh-…. you know. The Titan stood and bit down the pain. "Your grandfather and father are gone. You stand no chance solo."

The teen lowered his head, staring at the villainous ex-sidekick through the tops of smoldering green eyes.

"Have you learned nothing from our fights, Titan?" Manny hissed, spreading his claws as he readied to tear into the Titan. "If there's anything me and mi famila have proven is that the Rivera men never back down. I'd be scared if I was you, Titan."

The Titan scoffed and folded his liquid metal arms.

"The odds are against you, Tigre." He grinned. "Even _if_ you do get past the skeleton bandito army, there is still me and La Cortina to contend with. This is no fight. It is a slaughter."

Manny gave a quick chuckle as he dug his footing into the piles of treasure under him.

"You're right. It _is_ a slaughter." The teen gave a sinister smile that would make his supervillain Grandpapi proud. El Tigre pounced from the mound of gold coins he was standing on and jumped toward the Titan.

Seeing the teen coming in fast but his tenders still giving him blinding pain, the Titanium Titan shot an order to the skeleton bandito army.

"Destroy Manny Rivera!" The ex-sidekick fumed. Reacting to the order, the undead soldiers jumped into the air, ready to meet El Tigre halfway.

Manny lashed out with every limb. Aged, undead bones broke with sickening cracks under the teen's super strength. A few skeleton bandito alone was no match for Manny, but as he fought on and on he found that his punches and kicks were repeating. He was pretty sure he popped that skeleton's head off _seven_ times all ready! Banditos of all sizes kept pouring in on the teen. After thirty seconds, the fight seemed almost synchronized. Kick, bandito legs break, punch, bandito's head flies off, slash, banditos were chopped into pieces and _repeat_. How could he incapacitate something that kept coming back for more?

"Getting tired, Tigre?" He heard the Titan jeer. "How long can you keep this up? The banditos can't die!"

Manny gulped. This was getting him nowhere. At this rate, he'd burn himself out before he ever got to La Cortina. But what of Grandpapi? Dad? He'd sworn to protect Dr. Chipotle Jr. and bring La Cortina down. How could he do this if her army would keep on regenerating and eating away at his energy? Was all this planning all in vain? No.

Hissing at the dishonorable thought that came to his mind, Manny sheathed his claws. The Titanium Titian's mocking laugh soon followed.

"So you surrender? Wow. That was easy and _pathetic_." The ex-sidekick sniggered. The skeleton banditos were called off.

El Tigre looked up and saw the undead soldiers part. The Titan walked smugly toward the teen.

"See? You cannot win. You were better off running with your little blue-haired girlfriend-" The Titanium Titan looked calmly at his nails when Manny suddenly darted to the side. "Hey! I didn't mean that!"

Yes, Manny Rivera was running… away… from a fight. But not for just any reason. The teen zipped toward the door but not before skidding to a stop.

"I'm not proud of this, but it has to be done." El Tigre hung his head but steadily began digging around in the mound of treasure. The Titan wasn't sure whether to attack him or watch.

Then Manny found what he was looking for. Gripping the powerful instrument the teen pulled his new weapon from the treasure. The Titan heard the faint sound of a guitar before he saw what Manny was holding in his hand. It was Sartana of the Dead's Mystic Guitar. The ex-sidekick's blood ran cold.

"Oh man-! STOP HIM!" The Titan blasted into the air. The skeleton banditos began inching their way toward the teen.

El Tigre chuckled.

"Too slow Titan!" Then he began running toward the city and toward La Cortina.

"Oh basuar." The Titanium Titan cursed as he watched the teen super dart off. "Alejandra's going to _kill_ me."

Manny ran. This was a new feeling. It was a mix between showing up to school with no pants in his favorite Zebra Donkey underwear and that time he was the Albino Burrito's sidekick… amplified times ten. His standards, villainous or heroic alike, were always the same: family honor and _never_ _**ever**_ run from a fight. Mumbling curses under his breath, Manny _thought_ he could kick the skeleton banditos' undead carcasses AND the Titanium Titan, but he couldn't! He lost a fight to some undead skeletons and that nutty ex-sidekick! It left a stale taste in his mouth to know he was running. But it was like his father always said. He'd rather run from a fight than leave his family alone. There were a few twists to Manny's circumstances but the principle was still the same.

The teen hero hoped that Frida was on her way to retrieving their secret weapon. She had to recover it from way across town and get it to La Cortina. Manny just had to keep the supervillainess busy and buy his best friend time. He foresaw a huge and long battle in front of him.

Manny followed La Cortina's path of destruction, but the city's buildings and landmarks were the same. The people though, they marked the villain's path. People, young and old, innocent and guilty, all fell where they once stood, their essences taken. Manny tired not to think about how horrible those white eyes looked. It was like every horror movie he'd seen come to life in ghastly proportions. When something like this happened on the big screen, Manny found it funny because he knew it was fictional, not real, but not now. There was a real monster of unnatural size consuming the essences of everyone he knew, everyone he cared for. If he kept thinking about that, he'd lose it. The teen had to focus on bringing down La Cortina. Hopefully that would restore all the essences she'd stolen and he'd never have to see those terrifying white eyes again.

La Cortina's huge shadow form was growing closer and closer as Manny ran on. It wasn't long until he came upon the first skeleton bandito. The undead soldier was harassing a frightened couple trapped in their car. The teen was thankful to see two people that were still functioning. Skidding to a halt Manny grabbed a hold of Sartana's Mystic Guitar.

"Well, I'm not much of a guitar player..." He tentatively curled a finger around the E string and gave it a light pluck. He was nearly blown out of his boots as the black magic guitar fired an energy burst.

The fluky shot hit the skeleton bandito off of the car and blew it into a nearby fountain. The couple in the car was flabbergasted. Then El Tigre hopped onto their hood. Seeing that the people were all right the teen gave them a firm gesture to leave. The frightened man behind the steering wheel nodded. Satisfied Manny resumed his race toward La Cortina.

Nearing the huge shadow monster, Manny could hear loud blasts from heavily armed tanks. The Miracle City Policia was on the front lines! The teen held in a dreaded gasp. Frida's dad! He was the Chief of Police! Manny couldn't let Frida's dad become La Cortina's next meal.

Finally, the thirteen-year-old was just a city block away from La Cortina. His lungs were burning, he couldn't feel his legs and he couldn't catch his breath. Leaning up against a building's brick wall, Manny heaved air into his oxygen deprived lungs. Just a second's rest and he'd be good. Then the air around his face suddenly got manically stinky. Manny gagged and spat, the horrible stench getting into his mouth. What in the heck? Was he next to an open dumpster? Something told Manny to turn around.

Spinning on his heel, he saw a big skeleton bandito standing behind him.

"Santa _Sanchez_!" The thirteen-year-old blurted out as he dove to the right and coming to a rude stop on the asphalt. As he did, the undead soldier sliced the air with his zombie claws where Manny's head was milliseconds before.

Getting up from the ground, Manny barely had time to fall back down when the skeleton lashed out again.

"Why you dirty-!" The teen spat out as the bandito's sharp finger-bones shot just above his head. Manny held out his hand and extended his claws.

The skeleton cut easily under his metal talons. The undead bandito fell to the ground, twitched and fell still. Manny took in a wary breath. If it was that easy to sneak up on him, he'd better watch it. Getting up off of the ground, Manny dusted himself off and began to run the remaining city block. He didn't realize how many skeleton banditos were wandering around the streets. Over a dozen skeletons jumped around him. The teen hissed.

"I don't have time for you guys!" Manny exclaimed swiping the nearest undead with his claws. But another bandito replaced the one sliced to bits.

Once again, he was getting nowhere. Fighting the skeletons in front of him, the banditos from behind jumped him. The teen hit the asphalt. Manny didn't have time to get up. More undead soldiers moved in and piled on him. At the bottom of the heap of carcasses the stench was killer but not as bad as the fear factor. Unable to move and his breath nearly squeezed out of him by the dozens of skeleton banditos, Manny's heart was in his throat. He wouldn't survive much more of this! He had to get out!

Shooting one of his El Tigre fists, the powerful move blasted away a portion of the banditos. Then Manny saw his way out. There was a streetlight just within his grasp. Shooting out his other fist, his hand grabbed a hold of the streetlamp. Recoiling his fist, Manny pulled himself out of the stack of rotting banditos. Staggering to his feet, the teen super breathed in a breath of fresh air. He then felt something grab his ankle. Another skeleton bandito, well, half of one anyway gripped his ankle with its skeleton hand. Kicking it off, Manny looked up. Again he was getting surrounded. His eyes darted around, desperate for _any_ options. He needed a way to get by them without having to burn off more of his all ready depleting energy. The rooftops! Of course!

Shooting his fist to the nearest building, Manny hoisted himself up before another bandito could grab him. Scrambling to safely on a high rooftop, the teen had a clear shot to La Cortina.

La Cortina was at the Miracle City Prison, sucking up the remaining criminals inside the building. She looked even more intimidating when she was out in the middle of the open. The prison sat in the middle of a large city park and La Cortina looked HUGE! The police around her… ankles had their hands full with her undead army. Skeleton banditos overwhelmed the large tanks, armored vehicles and helicopters. The number of policemen was not enough to even _dent_ the skeleton army.

Sucking in his fear and exhaling, Manny sprinted into the city park and joined the battle. Skidding out into the open, the teen hero's mouth went dry. The odds were stacked so high, failure wasn't an option.

Chief Suárez cuffed another skeleton bandito. He growled. He hadn't kicked this much undead butt in his entire career. The police chief could see a new plaque in his office. "The Day I Saw More Undead Booty Than A Graveyard"; oh yeah, it would be the envy of the station for years to come.

"Rodriguez, Philippe! What is your status?" Jeffe Suarez barked into his police radio. There was static until a frightened voice came on the other line.

"This is Gonzales. Rodriguez and Philippe are down! This shadow monster did something to them! They are not responding!" Officer Gonzales whimpered. Suárez growled.

Two more of his officers were down, taken out by this mysterious shadow. The word "retreat" was on the tip of the police chief's tongue. Then from behind him, he heard aged bones creaking together. Spinning, Chief Suárez caught the skeleton bandito too late; he didn't have time to react. But just as it had him, metal claws shot through the undead corpse's torso and sliced it into three sections. Crumbling to the ground, the skeleton bandito was silent. Chief Suárez didn't believe it. Standing over the pile of thrashed skeleton remains was El Tigre!

"Holy _mama_! Rivera! You're alive!" The chief of police awed his mouth slightly slack. To his great annoyance, the thirteen-year-old trouble-maker gave him a smug grin.

"I was about to say the same thing to you Mr. Suárez." Manny replied. He relished the look of irritation on his best friend's father's face.

"I have no time for your delinquent remarks, Rivera! Is my daughter safe?" Jeffe Suárez's single blue eye got soft with worry. Again, the teen super smiled arrogantly.

"She is. I wouldn't let anything happen to Frida." Manny looked at his claws casually. Suárez smoldered.

It was no secret that Manny wasn't Chief Suárez's favorite person, mainly because he saw him as a bad influence on his daughter. But to those who knew Frida well, his concern should be with Manny and the influence of his blue-haired rocker daughter. Most of the escapades the two thirteen-year-olds got into were because of Frida's… firm suggestion.

"If I find so much as one scratch on my Frida's precious head, I'll-!" Chief Suárez began but Manny's attention was no longer on his friend's father. A giant black tentacle was coiled behind the police chief, ready to tear out his essence.

"_Get down_!" El Tigre dove onto Chief Suárez. Both fell to the ground as the tentacle flew through the air, _inches_ from their heads.

Manny gulped and struck out at the shadow tentacle. It fell to the ground, twitched and died before the remainder of the tentacle retreated. That was too close. He had to get everyone out of here.

"Listen Jefe, I know you don't like me and I know you think I'm a punk." Manny narrowed his eyes at the man as he pointed his thumb at himself. "But I am the only person who can stop La Cortina. Get your men outta here!"

Part of Chief Suárez didn't want to leave his city in the hands of a child, but the majority of him would like to see El Tigre beaten into a quivering pile of flesh. The man nodded.

"You have a plan, Rivera?" Suárez choked out, cocking a brow at the young delinquent. Manny gave a firm nod.

"Sí. And it involves guacamole." The teen hero expected Chief Suárez to immediately question his thinking but instead the man stood and straightened out his jacket.

"Whatever it takes to stop this monstruo." Then he grabbed his policia radio. "Gonzales and whoever else is still with us. I want all of you to retreat. El Tigre is here."

There were a lot of relieved whoops and cheers from the other policemen. Suárez clicked off his radio and gave the teen one last glare.

"I ask you to live through this, Rivera." He voiced. Manny looked at the man like he'd just grown another head. "You and I both know that my daughter cannot live without you. So for Frida's sake… be careful."

Those were words Manny thought Chief Suárez would never say. But the teen gave a single nod.

"Affirmative Jefe." Manny saluted. Suárez looked sick but he turned on his heel and began moving his men out of the dangerous area.

Manny was left all alone to face down La Cortina and her skeleton banditos. Gulping as he watched all the police retreat, the teen sensation turned and faced down his enemy.

La Cortina was too busy wolfing down the essences of helpless inmates to notice him. For now, she was in one place so that'd make it easier for Frida to find them and deliver the secret weapon. Manny focused on the amassing problem in front of him: the skeleton banditos. Déjà vu from just minuets before hit the young super. But he didn't have the Titanium Titan to contend with so this should be an easier fight. Giving a tiger's roar, El Tigre jumped into the crowd of undead corpses, swinging lefts and rights.

La Cortina heard the tiger roar. She spun, her huge shadowy body flexing with her movement. Below was El Tigre fighting off her army of skeleton banditos. She was stunned. The little niño was still alive! Impressive. Then her eyes came to Sartana's Mystical Guitar strapped to the thirteen-year-old hero's back. For a moment, concern shot through her mind like an icy bullet. She must get that black magic guitar out of El Tigre's claws.

Manny sliced and punched in all directions. Bones of all sizes littered the ground and crunched under his boots. But still the undead onslaught continued. Manny was tired; he couldn't deny it any longer. But he _had_ to fight on. Frida needed time to get here! This was the only way to destroy La Cortina and revive everyone! Fighting to ignore his numb muscles, Manny fought on.

Suddenly the skeletons, just as they were taking advantage of Manny's weakened state, they all backed off. Surprised but nonetheless thankful, the teen hero fell to his knees, out of breath.

"Hello again El Tigre." He heard La Cortina's voice. Manny looked up and saw the supervillainess, now back down to normal size, grinning at him. "You look tired niño."

Manny gritted his teeth at the woman in the alien costume. La Cortina casually looked at her fingernails.

"And I can only assume you blazed past the Titanium Titan but now that your energy is all wasted on my skeleton banditos, I suppose I can give you a breather." The woman shrugged. "You've got more tenacity than your father, El Tigre and that wets my palate."

Suddenly she stared hungrily at the teen.

"Tenacious essences like yours are superbly delicious." Dark tentacles began rising from her dress as she licked her lips. "And I will thoroughly enjoy feasting on your quintessence just as soon as I defeat you."

Manny made a fist. Frida wasn't here yet; she needed more time. Time to stall.

"Eat this!" The teen got back up to his feet and dug his feet into the dirt.

He dove at her, opening his claws and slashing the air like he'd lost his mind. La Cortina simply sidestepped. At the last second Manny backhanded and the tip of an edge of his claw caught La Cortina across the cheek. Throwing his claws to the ground Manny did a handstand-flip so that he was now facing the woman.

But La Cortina still had an amused smile even when she wiped her vital juice off of her face. She chuckled as she smeared the blood over her hand.

"You drew blood, Manny." La Cortina looked at him. Her face was plastered with an amused grin. "Is that entirely the hero's way?"

"It's my way Cortina!" Manny barked back. "Surrender now or there will be a whole lot more of your inner juices on the grass."

La Cortina smiled at him. Before his eyes the teen hero saw the score on the woman's face heal. Even though she was in an alien costume, Manny had never seen Alejandra regenerate before.

"That's going to be a problem." La Cortina told him. "I don't bleed very easy anymore."

Manny made fists, anger burning his throat.

"Then let's see how well you heal broken bones." He threatened.

The teen hero charged her again and his opponent sidestepped once again. But the teen wonder was ready. Manny counteracted La Cortina's move with a head-butt. The shadow super went stumbling back, giving Manny a chance to swing. He shot his El Tigre fists into her chest and stomach, driving her further and further in reverse. Finally La Cortina fell to her back. Pity and good sportsmanship was furthest from Manny's mind. He kept pummeling the woman.

"_You will pay for what you did to mi familia_!" El Tigre blasted, lifting his fists and slamming them into the shadowy super.

When it seemed that Manny had the upper hand, he was blown into the air by something that numbed his mind. Manny knew he landed because he felt the impact. Images swirled and incoherent voices bombarded his head. In a moment, life cleared enough for Manny to see La Cortina stand from the crater he left her in.

The shadowy super walked over to him without a hindrance to her stride. When she neared him, Manny was now quickly coming back to reality. The teen lurched backwards, trying to crawl away from the powerful villainess. But La Cortina was slowly advancing on him, toying with the boy like a cat would a mouse.

"Are you having a hard time focusing El Tigre?" She questioned. Manny's world was still swimming. "I merely took a nibble of your essence. Feels strange, huh? That's what happens when just a fraction of your essence is drained. Your body gets weak, your mind gets heavy and you start to lose consciousness."

Manny was hauled to his feet when La Cortina grabbed the front of his shirt.

"I am sorry it has to end this way, Manny." The woman suddenly said, her voice taking a sad tone. Manny felt her grab Sartana's Mystic Guitar from around his shoulders. "I really did respect you and your father but you two just can't see my reasoning. Bad guys must be eliminated. And that means you too, Manny."

La Cortina sighed.

"You are here to stop me and unfortunately, you must be destroyed. I will cleanse the world of crime and all those who stand in my way." La Cortina voiced looking between the teen in her grasp and Sartana's guitar.

Manny squirmed, grasping the shadowy super's wrist.

"I _will_ stop you!" He growled, reality continuing to sharpen. "I will fight you to the death, La Cortina!"

La Cortina chuckled. She leaned down and pressed her cold lips to his ear.

"Your death wish is granted, El Tigre." She purred.

From her hand that was clasped around his shirt La Cortina's inky costume began to bleed onto Manny's body. The teen writhed, the cold costume seconds away from sucking out his essence.

But suddenly something hit Manny on the back of the ankles. A "clunk" was heard. La Cortina blinked and she and Manny looked down at the ground. Right there, in the middle of the battlefield was a bowl of tortilla chips tied to a remote-control car.

"What in the-?" La Cortina blurted out. Then she heard Manny laugh.

"This is not over, La Cortina." He smiled at her. "Not by a long shot."

At that moment a huge blob of acidic guacamole struck La Cortina's arm that was holding Manny. The shadowy super shrieked in surprise and pain, releasing the teen super and dropping Sartana's Mystic Guitar. La Cortina reeled, cradling her wounded arm. Then the earth shook. Jerking their heads up, La Cortina and Manny saw a giant green mass moving toward the prison. The teen smiled.

"Frida." Manny breathed a sigh of relief. She was here; she was here with the secret weapon.

* * *

R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK!


	11. La Lucha Final

Ohayho everyone! CJzilla here with another chapter! In this update Manny and Frida are facing down La Cortina in a high-stakes battle. Though clever, Manny might have met his match in La Cortina.

As I smash this city to the ground, alls CJzilla has to roar is this: R&R! Love on me, hate on me... You know how I roll...

_KnucklesRedFury207.2: Manny will need a miracle to save the city and the help of the awesome Tiger Spirit sleeping within him._

_Moranofchaos2: Oh yeah! **RIDE** me for my spelling why don't ya! And no one's used guacamole as a weapon before!... At least, not to my knowledge._

_Amaris Solbes de la Vega: Manny?! EVIL?! NO! He just likes to ride the fence between good and bad... And yes, I need to work on my Spanish grammar. I'm white, so please forgive me._

_KingOfTheLab: The cavalry! Yes! Bring on the guacamole!_

_acosta perez jose ramiro: Hey! Thanks for the all spanish reivew! Seriously! It was fun to translate. Yeah, if the guacamole doesn't destroy La Cortina, it'll give her gas! (CJzilla reels with laughter) Was Sartana of the Dead's weakness guacamole? Did I miss an episode featuring acid guacamole?... I dunno. And thanks for the DC Comics analogy! That was awesome!_

* * *

Chapter 11

_La Lucha Final_

About halfway into the park and closing in fast was one of Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s giant guacamole monsters, obviously speeding after that bowl of tortilla chips. Seated on the guacamole monster's shoulder, smiling ear to ear, was Frida Suárez holding a remote-control for the mobile bowl of chips in her hands. At that moment Manny could kiss Frida for her timing. Now all he had to do was keep La Cortina from teleporting.

Spinning he saw the super holding her right arm, her black costume making a sizzling sound as it was being eaten away by the acid guacamole. Manny snickered.

"Who ever heard of a supervillain having an allergic reaction to guacamole?" The teen jeered taking a threatening step toward the shadowy super. La Cortina looked up, pain and surprise etched into her pale face.

Opening his hands, El Tigre exposed his claws.

"Now let's cut you down to size." He gave an evil smile that made La Cortina's blood freeze.

Shooting his fist forward, he caught the woman's face in his hand. Giving his grapple claw a yank backwards, La Cortina was jerked forward. She met Manny's free fist. Knocked to the ground, El Tigre pounced on her, pinning her wrists and straddling her stomach.

"You made the mistake of betraying my family's trust, Alejandra." The thirteen-year-old growled, his green eyes blazing with fury. "Now you _will_ pay for your twisted actions!"

La Cortina had fear and surprise written all over her face, but as soon as the terror surfaced, it vanished.

"You think it's going to be _that_ easy, Manny?" Anger pierced her green eyes. Her voice was beginning to rise as her inky costume bled over her face. "You think you can take me out with some poorly thought out plan?!"

Her costume began to shift under the thirteen-year-old. Manny was once again staring into those calculating purple eyes. Then the shadowy super began to grow again. Manny had a chance to hop off of her before he got squished. Swelling to gigantic size, La Cortina glared down at the tiny super.

"Whoa." Manny peeped out. Making a fist, the shadowy supervillainess drove her hand toward the hero.

Manny did a back-summersault _barely_ evading La Cortina's dark hand. Holding his chest, _that_ was a scare he didn't want to repeat.

"Hey Manny!" He heard Frida greet. Glancing back at his blue-haired rocker friend, Manny's eyes quickly returned to La Cortina.

"You're _awesome_ Frida!" The grateful teen called back to her. Frida snickered as she jumped off of the guacamole monster's shoulder. "BUT CUT IT A LITTLE _CLOSER_ NEXT TIME!"

Frida puffed out a sigh as she rolled her eyes.

"Everybody's a critic." She watched her friend run around in circles, trying to escape a painful smash by La Cortina's fists. Frida gasped and looked up to the guacamole monster, who was enjoying a tortilla chip and a chunk of its own arm. "Giant guacamole monster, I need you to start throwing yourself at the giant shadow!"

Taking the chip it was about to eat, the guacamole monster glanced down at the girl like she went crazy insane. Folding its delicious arms, the monster stuck its nose in the air and shook its head. Frida slapped her forehead.

"I can barely sweet talk my dad's dogs, how am I going to get a guacamole monster to-" Then the bowl of tortilla chips in the monster's hand caught Frida's eyes. "Wait! That's it!"

Zipping over to the guacamole monster, the blue-haired girl pointed behind it.

"Look! It's a _giant_ churro!" Frida exclaimed. The guacamole spun its head and gave the girl an opportunity to seize the tortilla chips.

Feeling its chip bowl yanked out of its spicy hand, the guacamole monster spun. It caught Frida racing toward La Cortina, chips in hand. The monster bellowed angrily and tore after the girl.

Just at that second La Cortina managed to pin Manny to the ground with her giant shadow hand. The teen struggled but the shadowy super's cold grasp could not be broken. Looking up he saw La Cortina's purple eyes narrow in disgust as her shadows began to move over his body. Manny fought it but the inky black costume was creeping up his chest and neck. He let out a grunt of fright as the shadow moved over his lips and into his mouth. He would choke on the inky vicious shadow!

Just as La Cortina could taste the boy's essence, something flew through the air. It was that bowl of chips attached to a remote-controlled car. She was sure it hit her arm and sunk into her shadowy body. Glancing to the side, the giant shadow super saw Frida, a look of anger on her face. Blinking at the girl, La Cortina questioned what the use of throwing a bowl of tortilla chips was. The shadowy supervillainess pondered the matter too long.

Something then tackled La Cortina from the side, ripping her hand off of Manny and slammed her to the ground. Shocked, the giant super opened her eyes and saw a massive acidic guacamole monster pinning her to the grassy ground. Then the pain registered.

"Manny!" Frida sprinted up to her friend. Manny was rolling onto his side, dazed and slow. "Manny?! Are you all right?!"

She knelt down to her best friend. El Tigre got to his hands and knees before he retched, bringing up a portion of La Cortina's inky shadow costume. Frida cringed.

"Ew!" She gagged. Manny shivered.

"Oh! That… was… _NASTY_!" The thirteen-year-old super shuddered. "It was like licking a chalkboard!"

Frida gave him a pity chuckle as she picked off pieces of the inky costume from him.

"And you've _licked_ the chalkboard before?" The blue-haired rocker questioned, slapping her friend on the back. Manny heaved, more shadow costume coming up.

"Ai." He groaned, wiping his mouth. "Yes. Remember in the third grade? When _you_ dared me to lick the chalkboard?"

Frida thought for a moment.

"Surprisingly, no. Man, you hold onto a lot of stuff, don't you?" She questioned, hands on her hips. Manny rolled his eyes but smiled at his best friend.

"Thanks for the rescue." He told her. Frida beamed, her dark blue eyes twinkling.

"_Aw_." For some reason, she was fighting off a blush. "You're _welcome_. It's not everyday I get to ride a giant guacamole monster!"

Manny coughed and stood.

"Our plan is still on, Frida." He told her. Frida gave a nod.

"Gotcha!" The girl then gave the "okay" sign. Frida glanced over her friend. "But you don't have it, so where is it?"

Realization hit Manny. La Cortina grabbed it from his shoulders!

"Shoot!" The thirteen-year-old cursed. The boy looked around, hoping that it didn't get smashed in the melee.

To his relief, Sartana's Mystic Guitar, still lying where La Cortina had dropped it. Wiping his forehead, Manny heard Frida gave an evil snicker as she rubbed her hands together.

"Every time I get my little paws on that Mystic Guitar, I feel as if I can rule the world!" The little rocker then gave an evil cackle. El Tigre put his hand on her shoulder.

"Relax Frida. One supervillain at a time, please." Manny wagged his finger at her. Frida gave a sheepish chuckle and rubbed the back of her head. "All right, you get Sartana's guitar while the guacamole softens up La Cortina."

They both looked at La Cortina, trying her best to avoid the crazed guacamole monster as it chased her around, bent on retrieving its tortilla chips. You could tell where the guacamole monster had made contact with La Cortina's costume. On some parts of her body were marks that resembled burnt paper; flaky, charred pieces of costume rained from the sky as La Cortina was slowly being whittled away. Manny and Frida knew that the villainous shadow was losing against the guacamole.

"Okay Frida, we have to hit La Cortina with everything we've got!" Manny exposed his claws as he glanced to Frida. The girl nodded calmly and set her left had on the neck of the Mystical Guitar and prepared to pluck a few power cords. "Get ready for-"

Just then La Cortina did something desperate yet unexpected. Using her surroundings, the shadowy super pulled the Miracle City Prison's large doors off of its hinges. With two enormous iron doors in her grasp, La Cortina threw them at the monster. The avocado dip monster didn't have time to weave. The monster was flattened, acid guacamole splattering and collecting into small blobs. The guacamole monster was destroyed. She stood on the doors, making sure that the monster moved no more. La Cortina was very weakened shown by her quivering shoulders and smoking body from where the guacamole had touched. Then she looked up.

Manny and Frida's blood ran cold when they saw the unnatural rile in La Cortina's huge purple eyes. With a wave of her giant hand, the enormous shadowy super commanded her skeleton banditos. More undead soldiers responded to her command and burst from their graves. The ground shook with a violent force, throwing Manny and Frida to the grass. Skeletonized hands burst from the grass as the rotting corpses massed with the ones all ready standing on the battlefield. The skeleton banditos marched in great numbers toward the two kids.

Faced with such huge numbers and their secret weapon gone, Manny turned to Frida.

"Last chance to run, mi amiga." He told her, his green eyes firm. Frida scoffed.

"_Yeah right_! There's no place I'd rather be than fighting an impossible battle with mi mejor amigo." Frida responded giving Manny a nod. The teen hero gave his friend a goofy grin. "Besides, even if I _do_ run, she'll find me."

Manny couldn't help but wonder if she was playing with a full deck. But who was he to argue with Frida. She obviously knew more than he did.

"Oh, Frida, you're the best friend a guy could ask for!" Manny nearly let a tear go as he looped an arm around her and squeezed. Frida gave a little laugh before she pushed him off of her.

"We'll save the sappy stuff for the victory party! Right now, I'm not passing up a chance to play in front of a live audience." Grinning crazily at La Cortina's monstrous form, the little blue-haired rocker shredded out a powerful heavy metal cord on Sartana's Mystic Guitar. A ray of black magic power flew through the air and clipped the shadowy super on the shoulder.

Clapping a shadow hand on the sizzling wound where the black magic beam struck, La Cortina narrowed her purple eyes.

"It's working!" Manny cheered and stanced, glaring down the incoming undead army. "Keep playing! I'll keep these bone bags off of your back!"

With another El Tigre roar, Manny jumped into the skeleton banditos, Frida's guitar riffs ringing in his ears.

Swipe after swipe, bone pile after bone pile, the teen super was keeping the undead soldiers at bay. He never got a chance to look up and see how Frida was fairing but her continuous powerhouse guitar playing let him know that she was all right.

A smile was plastered on Manny's face. They were on the home stretch! They would win this and get back everyone's essences! La Cortina was weakened from the guacamole monster and Sartana's Mystic Guitar would finish her off! In just a few more seconds, he and Frida would walk away from this fight laughing and celebrated as heroes! La Cortina would go to prison and never terrorize this city agai-!

Suddenly the battlefield silenced; guitar riffs no longer heard. Then Manny's worst fear happened.

"MANNY!" It was Frida! Spinning, the thirteen-year-old hero's eyes came to La Cortina's daunting form, his best friend gripped in her hand. "_MANNY_! HELP!"

Manny's jaw hit the floor and his blood chilled.

"FRIDA!-_Uh_!" From behind a skeleton bandito tackled him. El Tigre's face met dirt.

"MANNY!" Frida's cries grew more and more terrified. Manny fought back against all the undead banditos piling up on him. "HELP ME, MANNY!"

"_No_! Frida!" Manny growled, his face still in the dirt. But before he could take another swipe with his hands, the undead banditos gave him a rock hard hit to his head.

The fuzz of unconsciousness was back as Manny's head swam. The teen hero's mind twisted as reality began to lose its sharpness. The brightness of La Cortina's sinister purple eyes was swirling together with the city's backdrop and the clanking of undead bones lost its sound. Everything seemed to shift into slow-motion from that moment on. The teen super could see Frida's mouth move with screams as she was held prisoner in La Cortina's giant fist, but he could hear nothing. Only his own heartbeat sounded through his head. His steady, continuous, lulling rhythm of his heart urged Manny to embrace unconsciousness.

Darkness was all around Manny. It choked him, trying to absorb his mind into its void of nothingness. It rioted and fought to devour him. But the teen hero fought against its hunger, kicking, clawing and thrashing in this deadly melee, fighting against an enemy that never lost. With his mind growing heavier and weaker by the second, Manny was tempted to surrender to the darkness consuming his mind.

No! _Frida_! He had to keep fighting for _Frida_! If he blacked out, La Cortina would _win_! Miracle City would be doomed, there would be no hope for his father and grandpapi and Frida's essence would be next on La Cortina's menu! He didn't come _this_ far to let unconsciousness win.

Manny's mind was clouded with agonizing pain and his body relaxed. As soon as the teen hero felt loose, the undead soldiers hauled him to his feet without much care to the injury they just inflicted. Yelping at the pain, Manny couldn't stop the skeletons grabbing a hold on his body, clasping him firmly and not allowing him to move. The undead grabbed the teen's face and jerked it upwards. Opening his eyes, Manny was looking at La Cortina's huge shadowy form. Frida was still untouched and writhing and wriggling in the shadow monster's grasp, screaming curses at La Cortina.

"You lousy, horrible, _good-for-nothing_ excuse for a shadow! You dirty, rotten, stinking _piece of porqueria_!" Frida fumed and fought. In vain, though; La Cortina's grip would not be broken.

The evil shadow pulled Frida's hands and legs apart, completely immobilizing the young girl. Frida pulled and squirmed but it was no use; La Cortina was too strong for her.

"You're a black moco with a _horrible_ taste in men! I mean the _Titanium Titan_?! _Yuck_! He's like four-foot-_nothing_, his teeth could crack open a coconut and he smells like microwave burritos! I-!" But Frida's little rant was stopped when La Cortina brought her up to her huge face. The thirteen-year-old cowered under her purple eyes.

Manny watched in horror as La Cortina raised her other hand and formed it into a dark tentacle. The shadowy super held it threateningly at the young girl.

"ALEJANDRA!" El Tigre cried into the air. His call got La Cortina's attention and she looked down at the boy. "Let Frida go! T-t-take _me_ instead!"

The shadowy super stared at the boy for several long seconds before she dropped her aim on the girl's body. Frida gasped.

"Manny! No! Don't do it, Manny!" The little rocker shouted back. La Cortina looked between Frida and Manny, feeling amused.

The giant shadow super bent down to the thirteen-year-old hero, her lithe, stretchy body moving like a ribbon. La Cortina and El Tigre stared each other down. Manny wished he could read the crazy supervillainess's mind since he couldn't see her expression. La Cortina lingered, her huge purple eyes boring into his. Then she gave a chuckle that chilled Manny's spine.

"You can't win, El Tigre." The shadow super's smoky, distorted voice resounded through Manny's mind. With a simple gesture, La Cortina held Frida into view. "Don't worry, Manny. You'll join her soon enough."

Manny saw the look of terror in Frida's as the villainess held her in front of him. Then La Cortina stood straight. Without taking her eyes off of Manny, the shadow formed a tentacle with her left hand. Slowly, La Cortina began to move it toward Frida. No matter how hard she struggled, the thirteen-year-old girl couldn't get free, couldn't get away. Frida started to scream, a wave of panic coursing over her body.

At that moment, nothing else mattered to Manny accept for Frida's safety. The thirteen-year-old hero snarled and shot out his El Tigre fists. The skeleton banditos holding his arms were creamed. As he recoiled his fists, Manny kicked his feet free from the undead holding his ankles. With a flex of his body, Manny was free. But he wasn't quick enough.

Manny heard Frida scream. It wasn't natural; it was a wet half-scream. Craning around the teen saw his worst nightmares come to life. La Cortina had plunged her inky black tentacle into Frida's chest. The frightened girl was still conscious but so stunned and scared that all she could do was gasp.

"FRIDA!" Manny screamed. A second was all it took to see his best friend knocking on heaven's door.

Then something inside Manny Rivera _snapped_.

Adrenaline and fury raged through the teen's body, awakening an El Tigre power that he'd only experienced once. Suddenly glowing with a bright green incandescence, Manny was overrun by the mystical Tiger Spirit. Eyes shinning bright green with this mighty power, the boy now had the ability to save his friend. Manny crouched and put all he had into this jump. Sailing toward La Cortina, the teen super opened his claws and gave the biggest El Tigre roar of his life. La Cortina only had time to awe at the enormous power within the young boy.

Then claws met shadow.

Slicing off the tentacle that was inside of Frida, the shadow super didn't get the chance to pull her essence from her body. With another slash, La Cortina's hand holding the girl was hacked off. As the inky shadow around her dissipated, Frida was free falling. Five stories from the ground, the little rocker knew she wouldn't survive the impact. Then she was swallowed up by this awesome green light and the next thing she knew, her feet were on the grass.

As soon as Frida was safely on the ground, Manny turned his full fury toward La Cortina. Still glowing with the Tiger Spirit, the thirteen-year-old hero plunged his claws into a pile of acidic guacamole at his feet. With his metal talons covered in La Cortina's greatest weakness, Manny dove at her again. Plunging his guacamole-covered claws into her, Manny heard the shadowy super cry out in pain. La Cortina screamed as the avocado dip began to eat away her powers. Swiping at the awesomely powerful teen, the shadow super attempted to swat him away. Her hand met Manny but in an instant, her shadowy grasp was shredded with his metal claws. With every slash of El Tigre's poisonous claws, she shrank and grew weaker. Pieces of shadowy costume fell to the ground and faded into ash. La Cortina's size began to lessen.

Finally the woman stood at her original height but Manny kept on. Slashing the acidic guacamole deeper and deeper into her shadowy cloak, La Cortina was getting so weak that she couldn't defend herself. El Tigre gave her one last swipe. Pulling back his arm as far back as he could, Manny put all of what he had into that last blow. Claws met costume and three deep gashes filled with acid guacamole pierced the shadow. With a flash of green light, the woman crumpled to the ground.

Manny stood victorious, hardly breathless from attacking the powerful shadow super. Suddenly the Tiger Spirit left him; the green glow faded into the air and the rush of power was gone. The teen super suddenly reeled, feeling woozy after that blast of energy. Manny fell to his knees, unable to keep his balance standing. Shaking the stars from his head, the teen hero stood and looked over to his beaten enemy.

La Cortina was alive but writhing in pain as her alien costume was melting from her body. From having the city within her hands and now reduced to a quivering has-been, frustration and fury smoldered inside her. What little power was still inside her, Alejandra would avenge her broken dreams.

Manny scoffed through gritted teeth as he glared at the beaten La Cortina. She stole so many essences and now she WILL give them back. Narrowing his eyes and walking over to the powerless woman, the teen superhero stretched out his hand to grab her. In a move and with power he didn't think she had, La Cortina lashed out with a ribbon of darkness. The tentacle hit the teen's left arm with enough force to knock him down. Manny hissed in pain as he hit the ground, holding his very painful arm. La Cortina rose to her feet and staggered toward the young super, holding up her left arm. The last remaining shreds of costume on her arm were formed into a sharp point. Manny could see the crazed look in Alejandra's purple eyes as she cranked back her arm, determined to strike him.

"You little _savage_!" She fumed stumbling toward him, her black costume bleeding off of her face and revealing beady green eyes. "You may have cut me down from size but I will make sure you'll _not live to do it again_!"

Raising her arm to strike the helpless boy, Alejandra's mind was far from her heroic ambitions. Only revenge and needless violence remained. She'd become a villain; a petty scoundrel about to take out her anger on the teen that stopped her distorted and cruel rampage over Miracle City.

Then something from behind hit the woman in the back. The villainess yelped in pain and she fell forward, onto Manny. The teen caught Alejandra and saw a smoldering mark on her inky black costume. Looking up, Manny saw Frida, holding a smoking Mystic Guitar as her hand was poised for another strum.

But when he thought Alejandra was unconscious, the evil woman growled and tried to attack again. As La Cortina raised her arm for another strike at him, Manny noticed a violet glimmer winking at him in the sunlight. Glancing to the woman's right hand, he saw her ring; the ring with the stone said to be from space.

Something told him to break it. The teen shot a claw to her ring. Upon impact with the powerful metal talon, the purple stone instantly shattered and released a bright purple glow.

"NO!" Alejandra cried as her precious stone burst into hundreds of little pieces. The glow within the stone shards disappeared.

The woman gasped and starred at her broken ring. Then all of her inky black costume melted from her body and disintegrated on the ground.

"NO! NO! YOU CANNOT LEAVE ME!" Alejandra shouted, trying to scoop up as much of the broken stone as she could. "I NEED YOU! YOU CANNOT LEAVE!"

But there was nothing to be done; the stone and its power were gone. Devastated at her loss, Alejandra started to weep over her broken alien ring and the power it held within it. This battle was over. At that moment the clouds burst and thunder clapped. Large raindrops fell from the sky as the essences of all those attacked by La Cortina were restored.

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R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK N' ROLL!


	12. Son's Gonna Rise

Ohayho New York! Konnichi wa London! Konban wa Tokyo! CJzilla here with her last update for "_Luna Nerga_". Sad? Don't be. You'll see more of my ficitons floating around the FanFiction Land archives... Including El Tigre.

In this final chapter, Manny and Frida are rewarded for their impossible victory and Alejandra plots. Enjoy this LAST installment.

As I swat planes circling my head, alls CJzilla has to roar is this: R&R! Love on me... hate on me... You know...

_KingOfTheLab: Behold! The end! Thank you for reviewing. I have to say, I looked forward to your reviews a lot. CJzilla out._

_Moranofchaos2: You'll find out what happens to Alejandra and the Titanium Titan... Good thoughts? It depends on who you are cheering for. Villain or hero? Thanks for reviewing._

_KnucklesRedFury207.2: Yep. Last chapter. I promise to please and wrap up with style! Thanks for reviewing._

_acosta perez jose ramiro: Sorry. I just had guacamole on the brain... but I DIDN'T HAVE ANY TORTILLA CHIPS! NO! Ahem... sorry. Hey, thanks for reviewing; your pointers and tips on the Spanish language made me very happy. And that all Spanish review... CLASSIC; that goes in the vault of awesome reviews._

_Amaris Solbes de la Vega: I'm sorry! IT IS THE END! Oh! But it was a blast to write! Thanks for the constructive comments on my Spanish grammar. I know it's not perfect and the next El Tigre fic I write, it will be better!_

* * *

Chapter 12

_Son's Gonna Rise_

Manny Rivera stood in near a window of his family's hacienda as he looked out over Miracle City. A weird feeling hit the young boy as he beheld the placid cityscape. You'd never think that just thirty-one hours ago, Miracle City's residences were facing extermination by the hands of a twisted supervillain and that two thirteen-year-olds faced down said demented criminal. Not to mention that the two nutty kids _won_. To Manny, his battle with La Cortina now simply known as the super-criminal Alejandra Marengo was surreal; like a fading dream that he only remembered in bits and pieces. But then the thirteen-year-old hero would glance down and set a hand on the plaster casing his shattered arm was inside. His fight with La Cortina was reality and the aching throughout his body reminded him of that.

"Manny?" Manny turned at the sound of his name. He saw Grandpapi poke his head out of the kitchen. "Chu is too quiet! How's chur arm?! It hurts doesn't it?! I's get chu some more painkillers! HANG ON!"

The thirteen-year-old hero could help but laugh.

"Relax Grandpapi; my arm's fine." He swatted the air like it was no big deal. But that didn't quiet the supervillain grandfather.

"No grandson! _Chu_ don't _know_ how much pain chu's in!" Then he gasped sharply. "CHU'VE GONE DELUSIONAL WITH DE BLINDING PAIN!"

"GRANDPAPI!" Manny yelled over his grandfather's yelling. The elderly man silenced… momentarily. "I'm _fine_! Really! Now _stop_ fussing! The nursing-me-back-to-health-thing is _creeping_ me out."

As he smiled uncomfortably, Grandpapi scoffed.

"Please. I's make de excelente nurse. NOW _SHUT UP_ AND _SIT DOWN_!" Grandpapi commanded, his voice growing high and authoritative. Peeping in terror, Manny sprinted to the nearest chair and sat. "Bueno! Now stay dere while I's steals chu soda."

"Yes sir!" Manny immediately replied, sitting rigid with his hands on his lap. Grandpapi gave his grandson a stare that he'd only got from a teacher before he ran back into the kitchen.

Once his nutty grandfather was gone, the thirteen-year-old super sighed and hopped off of his chair. Walking back over to the window, Manny stared out at Miracle City again. He never thought he'd be grateful to see another day in this crusty, spicy, cesspool of a city.

Then Manny heard the front door open and the jingling of spurs cut through the air. The teen turned, not able to fight down a happy smile.

_Dad_.

In walked Rodolfo Rivera, superhero and father extraordinaire. The man's eyes combed the living room for his son and he immediately softened when he saw Manny limp toward him.

"You should be lying down or at least sitting, mi hijo." Rodolfo voiced walking to his son. The spunky thirteen-year-old scoffed.

"Sittin's for suckers." Manny waved off the notion. Then the boy turned his big brown eyes to the only major parental figure he'd known and that he almost lost. "Hola papa."

Rodolfo gave his son a proud smile.

"Hola Manny." Kneeling he hugged the boy.

Manny wrapped his good arm around his father and squeezed. For a few intense minuets there, the boy thought he'd never have another hug from his father. When La Cortina sucked out White Pantera's essence, Manny thought that he'd be gone forever. The teen then realized that no matter how much his father pushed his buttons, he couldn't live without him.

"How are you feeling, my son?" Rodolfo questioned. Manny left his father's embrace and wiped a small tear from his eye.

Clearing his throat, the super-macho teen was too proud to be seen crying.

"I'll live." Manny puffed out his chest. "It's just a few scrapes, bruises, a mild concussion, broken arm and strains. I'm not ticklish!"

Rodolfo chuckled and rolled his eyes. The teen held in his breath until it hurt his aching ribs. Puffing out his breath, Manny cradled his throbbing arm.

"Ai." He peeped, chewing on his bottom lip. The teen then hobbled over to the couch and sat. "So papa, do you want to hear how me and Frida defeated Alejandra again?"

"Definitely, but not now mi hijo." Rodolfo replied and walked to his son. He gave the teen a beaming proud smile. "You must get ready, Manny. Have you forgotten about the award ceremony that Municipal President Rodriguez and the city are throwing you?"

Manny's eyes widened with shock.

"_San Diego_! I _totally_ spaced it!" The teen hopped off of the couch and began hobbling towards his room. "Oh man! I've never gotten an award before! … Uh… what happens now?"

Rodolfo snickered.

"It's very simple, mi hijo." The superhero walked up to his son, picked him up and set him back on the couch. "You show up at City Hall as a superhero, smile, wave, accept your reward for your bravery and walk off. That's it."

Just then Grandpapi came skittering into the living room. The retired supervillain had a bottle of soda in his hand while several robot arms of his golden sombrero held candy, comic books, video games and a stack of waffles on a plate.

"All right, hito. I's got chu a soda, video game, candy and waffles!" Grandpapi cheered. It was heartwarming to see the naughty villain cater to his grandson's needs while he was hurt.

Rodolfo gave a giddy giggle and surprised his father.

"_Oh_ papi! I didn't know you had it in you!" White Pantera cooed at his elderly yet naughty father. Grandpapi gulped and looked for excuses.

"Oh! Well, I-… I's _just_ robbed de video game store, comic book store and waffle house! I t'ought dat mi ailing grandson had use for dis _junk_." The retired supervillain stuck his nose in the air, hoping to throw suspicion that he was doing something… _nice_! "Here Manny… I's don't want to see dese candies anymore."

With that Grandpapi gave the teen a big bag of candy and set the other things on the coffee table. Rodolfo couldn't keep that syrupy look off of his face. Grandpapi simply avoided his son's eyes.

"Thanks Grandpapi!" Manny cheered, stuffing handfuls of candy into his mouth. Then he quirked a brow at his father. "So no speech or anything?"

Rodolfo then looked a little uneasy. Manny stared at his father for a long second.

"Well… If you feel the need to say something while receiving your reward, then please do… But I must warn you Manny, your award ceremony will be on public television." White Pantera put a hand on his boy's shoulders. Manny's brown eyes got wide.

"You mean-! You mean to tell me that all of Miracle City will be watching and listening to every word I say?!" The thirteen-year-old whispered. Rodolfo nodded.

Suddenly the teen snickered evilly, his mouth curving into a wicked smile and his eyes sharpening. This is what Rodolfo was afraid of.

"Manny… I-, which is to say-… uh… just don't say something you'll regret, all right my son?" White Pantera cocked his head at his only child. Manny suddenly gave his father a big, cute stare.

"Why papi! I would _never_ do something that I'd regret later on!" For added affect, he batted his eyelashes. Rodolfo wasn't buying the "cute look" but he nodded.

"Bueno. Now the award show starts in twenty minuets. We have just enough time to meet the Suárezs downstairs." White Pantera beamed. Manny let out an excited squeal.

"Awesome! Frida's here! GRANDPAPI! Let's GO!" Manny hopped off of the couch and slowly began to hobble toward the door. Rodolfo and Grandpapi watched the injured teen shuffle and the sight was pathetic.

"It'll take a lot longer if we's let Manny walk." Grandpapi cocked a brow. White Pantera nodded.

"Then let's take the express." Rodolfo walked over to his son and flung him over his shoulder. Grandpapi then transformed into Puma Loco and grabbed his son holding his grandson.

Without another word Grandpapi ran out the door and dove off of the building's roof. Manny screamed in excitement as he, his beloved father and naughty grandfather were freefalling to the ground. It was good to have Miracle City's favorite super family reunited and pulling off the same craziness they were famous for.

At the last second, Puma Loco activated his rocket feet and the Rivera family gently landed on the ground. Manny was squealing as Rodolfo hopped out of Puma Loco's arms and landed on the ground.

"We should have a family freefall more often." The teen beamed as he set his two feet on the pavement and limped around in some sort of injured happy dance.

"Manny!" Manny heard his name. Turning he saw Frida running down the sidewalk to him.

"Hey Frida!" The boy staggered toward his best friend. He hadn't seen her since they both got separated when he had to go into the hospital for his broken arm.

The little blue-haired rocker laughed as she skidded up to him.

"Awesome cast!" Frida squealed. "Can I sign it?!"

"Duh! You can sign next to Señor Chappy and my dad!" Manny pointed at a blank area of plaster. Suddenly obtaining a black marker, Frida doodled her name on her friend's shattered arm bone.

"That is _SO_ cool!" She gawked then gave Manny a mischievous look as she pointed at his arm "Could you see your bone? Was it sticking out of your arm?!"

Manny shook his head.

"It was just a hairline fracture but it made an awesome X-ray! I've got a copy in my room!" The thirteen-year-old hero cheered. Frida slapped him on the back.

"I gotta see it! The worst I got was a little cut on my hand." She presented her right hand. There was a black band-aid with little skulls covering the slight scratch that she got somewhere in the battle with La Cortina. "You wanna sign it?!"

"Sure!" Frida gave Manny her marker and he wrote his name on the small band-aid.

"Awesome!" The girl cheered, throwing her hands in the air. Then Rodolfo and Grandpapi came walking up to the two kids.

"Hola Frida." White Pantera greeted giving her a respectful nod. Now that Frida helped save the city and HIS life, Rodolfo saw her as more than just a blue-haired goofball.

"What's up, Mr. Rivera! Hola Grandpapi!" The blue-haired rocker cheered waving at both Rivera men. "You stoked for our award ceremony?!"

White Pantera gave the hyperactive girl a proud smile.

"Indeed. I am very proud of both of you." He ran his fingers through Frida's blue hair. The girl laughed but straightened out her goggles as she turned to Manny.

"Dude! Did you know the ceremony's gonna be broadcast over every _major_ TV station in Miracle City?!" She hissed with excitement. Manny laughed.

"Yeah!" Then he and Frida gave the same evil laugh. Mischief was soon to follow.

Rodolfo rolled his eyes as Grandpapi gave an approving chuckle.

"So Frida, where is your family?" White Pantera questioned. Frida gave a shrug.

"They're at City Hall. I told them I'd get a ride with Manny." The girl returned with a big smile.

"Chu three will have to go without me." Grandpapi stated. "I's be watching on a rooftop. All dat policia in one area is no good for supervillains!"

Manny gave his grandfather a big, gooey smile.

"Come _on_!" Frida complained. "We gotta _go_! We only got _fifteen_ minuets before the ceremony starts!"

Nodding, Manny turned to his father.

"Papi, can you give me and Frida a ride? I kinda can't hold onto her and jump over rooftops…" He glanced down at his plaster arm. Rodolfo gave a smile and nodded.

"Of course Manny." Hoisting his son and friend onto his shoulder, White Pantera turned to Puma Loco. "We'll see you at the award ceremony, papi."

Grandpapi gave an evil laugh as he gripped the controls of his Puma Loco suit.

"I's be de last ting dat de policia see." The naughty retired supervillain rubbed his hands together.

"Just make sure you hold off the villainy until AFTER we get our awards." Frida smiled back.

"Though it will kill me, I's will." Grandpapi nodded his face twisted with agony.

With that Puma Loco took off into the sky as White Pantera began running toward the City Hall, his son and friend screaming wildly on his shoulders.

Flying down Main Street, Manny, Frida and White Pantera were coming in on City Hall fast. People clogged the streets awaiting the two young saviors of their city. It was time for an explosive entrance. Smiling Manny spun his El Tigre belt buckle. In a flash of green light, the teen became his super-powered alias.

"Frida!" Manny yelled over the wind. "Grab my tail and hold on!"

The blue-haired rocker grabbed her best friend's tiger tail and nodded.

"All right dad! _Hit_ the breaks!" Manny said to his dad.

"Gotcha mi hijo!" With that Rodolfo came dug the heels of his Bronze Boots of Truth into the pavement. At that second, Manny jumped off of his father's shoulders.

Frida and El Tigre went flying into the air and sailing over the street. Laughing hysterically at the surprised looks on the bystanders' faces, the blue-haired girl let out a loud whoop. Manny filled his lungs full of air and gave a loud El Tigre roar. All heads craned around and the peoples' cheering only got louder. Cheering, yes _cheering_! Hundreds of people stood behind velvet ropes, screaming their heads off as they celebrated the two teens that had saved Miracle City.

The feeling was awesome. Over the whistling wind in his ears, Manny heard the crowd's screams of gratitude. The teen could no longer hold in his smile. Finally! Recognition!

Standing on the threshold of City Hall was Municipal President Rodriguez. The short man with glasses, bald head and big hair grey tuffs had to stand on a few commerce members just to reach his face to the podium microphone. Rodriguez was going on and on about rebuilding plans and erecting statues in his image around the battlefield, just in case anyone forgot who "lead" Miracle City through one of its darkest chapters. As the short man bored the crowd to death, something flew through the air toward City Hall.

Rodriguez barely had time to dive to the cement when Manny Rivera and Frida Suárez shot through the air but came to a soft stop. The banner hung over City Hall's threshold, ironically celebrating their victory over La Cortina, cushioned their fall but untied in the process. As the two teens gently fell to the podium, the hanging sign covered all those standing on City Hall's steps, including the Municipal President, most of the Policia Bureau and the TV cameras. While the police, including Frida's father fished around under the banner cloth for Rodriguez, the two teen cheered, their hands in the air.

"Awesome!" Both Manny and Frida screamed.

From a nearby yet shady rooftop many of Miracle City's more uninvited citizens looked over the large celebration. Though this event honoring two small children, one of which being a HUGE annoyance left a bad taste in their mouths, most of the city's supervillains respectfully attended. After all, if the little Rivera kid hadn't done anything, not one of them would be functioning. But that didn't mean all of the villains were taking El Tigre's heroic victory to heart.

"Ugh. Dr. Chipotle Sr.'s going to be sick." The mad scientist with the large metal arm groaned as he watched the banner-covered chaos. Dr. Chipotle Sr., the first of the supervillains of Miracle City to be attacked by La Cortina rolled his good eye.

"I agree." General Chapuza's smoky undead voice was equally annoyed. "How those two _pueril_ chuckleheads saved the city is beyond me."

Then the zombie general heard a weapon cock right next to his ear.

"Watch what chu say Chapuza! Chu too metal scientist!" It was Puma Loco, not taking General Chapuza's comment lightly. The old man narrowed his eyes from inside his intimidating mech suit. "Mi grandson save all of our _nalgas_! Show more respect or I's BLOW CHUR UNDEAD HEAD OFFS!"

Chapuza snorted fearlessly at Puma's daunting firepower.

"Tranquilizante Puma." He calmly replied. The zombie general turned to his old rival and stared at him. "In one way or another, we are _all_ grateful to your grandson. But even _you_ cannot deny that El Tigre had to have an insane amount of luck on his side to land La Cortina in prison!"

Puma Loco nodded and retracted all of his laser guns, missile launchers and porcupine bazookas away from Chapuza.

"Dis is a fact." The elderly supervillain agreed. Then there was a huff from another supervillain.

"You are darn right!" Don Baffi of the Moustache Mafia wheeled into the conversation, literally. "I fought with the crazy dame; I know! Your little punk grandson would need the luck of an entire forest of four-leaf clovers to pull of a successful fight!"

Puma Loco and Don Baffi glared each other down.

"Does anyone else feel de shames, man?" El Oso asked over his shoulder as he crouched near the edge of the rooftop. The rest of the supervillains cocked a brow at the fuzzy thug. "I's mean dat niños beat La Cortina? It's like we's have… no respect, mans."

The villains rolled their eyes but felt the indignity circling the rooftop.

"Oso!" Dr. Chipotle Sr. blasted at the bear-based criminal. "You're thinking too hard! Go stare at something shiny for a while!"

El Oso growled and stood from crouching.

"What chu say, man?!" The fuzzy thug growled, stomping over to Dr. Chipotle Sr. The mad scientist glared down the not-so-bright supervillain.

"You heard me! You're no good at thinking, Oso!" The scientist folded his arms. Oso fumed.

"Maybe not, man. But I's can pummel chu into a tortilla." Grabbing the mad scientist by the front of his smock, El Oso cranked back a fist. Dr. Chipotle Sr. and El Oso got into a fight.

The other villains completely ignored the lucha and kept talking amongst themselves.

"El Tigre will turn out just like his father, White Pantera." Lady Gobbler voiced, shooting Puma Loco a mocking stare. The demeaning _hero_ comment definitely got the old villain's attention.

Spinning, Puma Loco glared daggers at the old turkey-based villainess.

"_No he won't_!" He spat back, his mech suit standing threateningly. "He will be a villain just like his grandpapi!"

Lady Gobbler shrugged and pursed her wrinkly lips, satisfied that she got her crush's goat.

"Chur grandson _saved_ de city Puma. Not exactly villain material." The short old woman returned. Puma Loco gritted his teeth and squeezed his mech suit's controls.

"_He is evil I's tell chu_!" The old supervillain declared. "I's heard dat Manny used Sartana's Místico Guitarra in his battle with La Cortina! Definitely a villainous sucker punch."

The other villains "_Oooh_"ed. Puma Loco folded his robot's arms and gave the elderly supervillainess a smug grin. Lady Gobbler gritted her dentures. And speaking of the devil… In a puff of otherworldly red smoke, the unmistakable rattling of undead bones and a soft guitar cord sounds followed. Anyone who valued their life knew who it was. Sartana of the Dead's gravely chuckle was heard and her beaming crimson eyes stared into every villain's soul. Puma Loco couldn't be happier. The elderly supervillain gave a girly squeal and zipped over to the undead skeleton lady.

"_Hola_… mi vida." Puma Loco cooed flirtatiously and took Sartana's skeleton hand. The undead super-evil supervillainess brought her other hand to her mouth and gave an uncharacteristic giddy giggle.

"Oh Puma. You know exactly what to say." Sartana flirted back making the other supervillains gag and/or toss their lunch. Puma Loco blushed so hard that he steamed up the inside of his mech suit.

The undead skeleton lady slinked over to the edge of the building and cast her haunting eyes toward City Hall. She let out an amused chuckle. There was the entire Miracle City Policia Squad using their highly-trained skills to fight a cloth banner as they tried to get Municipal President Rodriguez out from under the flying sign. El Tigre and Frida Suárez were standing on the steps of City Hall, laughing their little heads off at the sight. Sartana of the Dead knew that the two children were responsible for making the entire Policia Bureau look like fools; that made her scaly lips curve into a smile.

Then she heard Puma Loco's mech suit's hydraulic joints hiss beside her.

"You should be proud of your grandson, Puma." Sartana voiced quietly so as not to be heard by the other villains. She looked up at her wayward lover. "To fight La Cortina, El Tigre has to have great love for his familia. It is a bit… _virtuous_ and stupid but nonetheless impressive."

Puma Loco gave a goofy smile. Just then the two villainous lovers got a loud shush.

"QUIET!" Dr. Chipotle Jr. hissed from below. Looking over the edge of the building Sartana and Puma Loco saw Dr. Chipotle Jr., Black Cuervo and Señor Siniestro were perched on fire-escapes, watching City Hall with great interest. "The blue-haired vixen is about to get an award for saving the city!"

The three villains gave Sartana and Puma Loco loud shushes as they turned back to City Hall. The skeleton lady glanced over at the retired supervillain. Both shrugged and listened to Municipal President Rodriguez as he found his way up onto the podium.

Manny and Frida fought off their laughter after getting venom glares from Municipal President Rodriguez as he was finally rescued from the rouge banner. Straightening his glasses, the short man cleared his throat, climbed up onto the backs of two Chamber of Commerce members and tapped the microphone.

"Citizens of dis fine city, I, Municipal President Rodriguez presente to chu de two who saved Miracle City from de evil clutches of La Cortina! MANNY RIVERA AND FRIDA SUÁREZ!" He gestured toward the two teens smiling brightly beside him. The crowd… went… NUTS!

Frida threw her hands in the air, her joyous screaming drowned out by the commotion of the crowd. Manny simply grinned and waved his good arm. Rodriguez held up his hand and the crowd went reluctantly silent.

"Now I, Municipal President Rodriguez, would like to present Frida Suárez and Manny Rivera with de Golden Hearts of Miracle City." The short man gestured for an assistant off to the side. Out of the crowd came White Pantera, Maria Rivera, Police Chief Suárez and his wife.

The White Pantera held a big wooden box in his hands as the two sets of parents walked up City Hall's steps to Rodriguez. Nodding a curt thanks to the superhero, the Municipal President took the box, which was nearly his size anyway, and opened it. Pulling out two golden metals in the shape of a heart with wings tied to regal red ribbons, Rodriguez tossed the box to the side which bounced into the crowd and gave someone a concussion.

"Rivera, Suarez, step forward por favor." The short man commanded. You didn't have to tell Manny and Frida twice.

The two teen zipped up to the podium with big smiles. Without another word Municipal President Rodriguez slipped the metals on Manny's neck and then Frida's. The crowd went crazy again!

"De savors of Miracle City, señoras y señores!" The short man gestured. Manny and Frida stared at their rewards carefully before posing together, holding up the golden metals.

As the crowd went bananas again, the photographers' cameras flashed wildly, nearly giving everyone within close distance a sun-tan. Then Rodriguez held up his hand. The cheering came to a screeching halt.

"Now I, Municipal President Rodriguez, will give the microphone to our savors. A few short words will suffice-" But the small man was shoved off the podium by the two teens. Manny was the first to the microphone.

Clearing his throat and taking a breath, El Tigre looked out over the people.

"I would just like to thank mi papa, mi mama, and mi grandpapi and mi best amiga for this award." The teen smiled as he looked over his family and his grandfather, across the street on a rooftop. Then Frida stood along side him and spoke into the mic.

"And I would like to thank mi familia too and the best friend a girl could ask for!" Frida cheered and gave Manny a quick hug, holding up her metal with her free hand. For some reason, Manny fought off a blush.

Then both children cleared their throats.

"And both of us would like to say…" Frida and Manny said into the microphone. Then they looked at each other mischievously. "**HOLA MIRACLE CITY! PPPPPBBBBBBTTT**!"

They blew a huge fart sound into the microphone. The crowd went dead silent as the children's families fainted on the steps. Manny and Frida high-fived and laughed their heads off. It was the fart sound heard around the city!

From across the street the supervillains were also stunned. Jaws hit the building top. Then Puma Loco laughed.

"Dat's de signal!" He tossed a glance over his mech suit's shoulder. He cocked his guns. "TIME FOR DE TPING!"

Igniting his rocket feet, Puma Loco soared above the rooftops. The other supervillains climbed down from the rooftop.

Flying over City Hall, Puma Loco fired hundreds and hundreds of rolls of toilet paper over the government building while the rest of Miracle City's supervillains invaded the area and tossed the harmless ammunition. Sartana of the Dead summoned skeleton banditos with a strum of her black magic guitar and the undead began throwing toilet paper. The Moustache Mafia used their mobile moustaches to toss TP over trees while the Chipotles used a guacamole monster and a HUGE roll of TP to blanket the street. General Chapuza and El Oso ripped off a toilet paper truck and were taking armfuls of TP and tossing them in all directions. In the air Señor Siniestro and the Flock of Fury rained toilet paper from the skies.

As toilet paper rained down from the sky, Manny turned to Frida; Frida looked right back. The two teen shared a moment that they would not soon forget. They basked in the limelight as best friends that no supervillain could tear apart.

As City Hall was being terrorized by TP throwing supervillains, the mood was far different at the Miracle City Prison. On the lowest and most secure level of the penitentiary Alejandra Marengo sat in the corner of her impenetrable cell. Her body was covered in an unbreakable white straightjacket, binding her hands to her sides. The authorities were not taking any chances with this powerful woman. The woman scoffed at the idea. Her alien ring was gone as was most of the energy it had but Alejandra could still feel _some_ power coursing through her body. The gift from the stars loved her enough to leave her a small amount of its power in her body as it died. It was _nothing_ compared to the power she grasped thirty-one hours ago but it was something. With a little rest and a few essences, she would return to power and avenge the dreams yanked out from under her. Alejandra heard the upper level inmates roaring with laughter. She knew why and it sent burning anger to her nose.

Manny Rivera with his dumb luck and villainous resistance and White Pantera and his cruel expectations; both would pay dearly for what happened to her.

As Alejandra Marengo's dark thoughts clouded her mind she heard footfalls on the prison floor. Looking up, she expected to see another prison guard taking either to gape at the "monster" that nearly destroyed the city or to tease her for her failings. Like she thought there was a guard, but not one she'd seen before.

"Alejandra Marengo?" He asked. Alejandra cocked a brow into the air but gave one nod.

Suddenly the guard shape-shifted and the form of the Titanium Titan was seen. Alejandra's heart soared.

"Titan! Oh Titan! You're here!" She said but the Titanium Titan immediately shushed her. Bringing his liquid metal arm up, he shoved his finger into the cell door's key hole.

"I never thought I'd be breaking _INTO_ a prison instead of out." The Titan whispered. Suddenly the cell door unlocked and the short ex-sidekick rushed in.

Looking over his partner, a soft look came to the Titanium Titan's face. Alejandra looked tired and roughed up. Gritting his teeth, he went to work on her straightjacket.

"I'm going to chop that El Tigre into salsa the next time I get my hands on him!" The Titan hissed. Alejandra giggled.

"I thought El Tigre finished you off, Titan. I was worried." She cooed and rested her head on his arm. Titan gave a tiny grin as he fiddled with her bonds.

"No. He just-…" He cringed when he thought of the crotch-hit he sustained. Giving a little whimper the Titan bit down on his tongue at the still painful area. "He just got lucky."

Just before the Titanium Titan undid the last strap of Alejandra's straightjacket the cell door locked automatically. Lights flashed, alarms wailed and the prison went in complete lockdown. Then hundred of incoming footfalls were heard. The Titan gave a groan.

"Don't worry, mi amore. I can get us out of here." Alejandra voiced calmly. Before he could question his partner's thinking, about a dozen guards, armed with tazer-guns and pepper spray gathered at the cell door.

"FREEZE!" All of the guards shouted at once, their weapon cross-hairs on both villains.

Alejandra chuckled coolly and stood.

"Never mind them. Grab me and hang on Titan." She glanced down at the ex-hero-sidekick. The Titanium Titan felt his arm wrap around Alejandra's curvy waist.

With one last glare at the prison guards, the supervillain woman smirked. Just as the officers pulled the triggers on their tazer-guns and pepper spray bottles, Alejandra teleported in a puff of black smoke leaving behind her straightjacket. Tazer darts and a cloud of pepper spray covered the empty cell; the Titanium Titan and La Cortina escaped.

The next thing the Titanium Titan knew, he was looking out over Miracle City from the outskirts of the city, MILES away from the prison. In fact, he could _see_ the prison from here! Whoa! Just a second before he and Alejandra were facing down dozens of prison guards with tazer-guns and pepper spray! Then he heard a soft thud from behind him. Spinning, the Titan saw Alejandra on the ground, too weak to hold herself up.

"Alejandra?!" The Titanium Titan scooped his partner up off of the ground. He cradled the woman in his liquid metal arms hoping that something was not seriously wrong with her.

Alejandra gave a weak grin as she opened her green eyes.

"Sorry… mi amore… I… don't have as much energy as… I used to." She said slowly, taking in big breaths between every word. The Titanium Titan held her carefully.

"You-… You will be all right, won't you?" He questioned. Alejandra giggled slightly.

"Sí. All I need is a little siesta." She sighed and blinked heavily.

The Titan then thought of something.

"Wait… If you could teleport… then why'd you stay in prison all this time?!" He stated like she was stupid. Alejandra laughed at his question.

"Simple, Titan. I needed the rest and to build up my energy to escape." Then she couldn't hold in a loud laugh. "And I wouldn't want to miss that supremely romántico rescue."

The Titan's face flushed and he couldn't help but feel a little stupid. Then her laughter died down to a seductive giggle.

"That was super-macho, mi amore." Alejandra placed her hand to the side of his head. The Titan kissed her hand.

She smiled and let her touch fall to his neck, shoulder and chest.

"But now they will be hunting you down too." Alejandra gave him a concerned look. The Titanium Titan scoffed.

"Old news, mi vida. But right now it is best for both of us to hide out for a while." He glanced down at his partner. "Perhaps Calavera until you get back to full strength."

Alejandra sighed as she looked out over Miracle City.

"Very well." She felt a little like a defeated coward to hide. Then she gave the Titan an icy stare. "They have not beaten us, Titan but let them think they've won."

The woman then stood from her lover's arms and looked out over the city that used to be hers, her back to the Titan.

"Let them think they've won; let them think that we are broken. They will just give us a rest." Alejandra made a fist at the sunbathed city. Then she turned back to her lover, her eyes glowing sinister purple. "When the opportune time comes we will prove to everyone how wrong they are and how nothing could break us! La Cortina and the Titanium Titan will rise again and _nothing_ will be able to stop us!"

The two supervillains looked down at the city. In the not-so-distant future, Miracle City would be theirs once more, even if that means taking out the superheroes, starting with El Tigre and White Pantera.

About thirty minuets after the awesome award ceremony at City Hall, the Rivera family including Frida were seating in the living room of the Rivera casa. Everyone's eyes were fixed to the television screen and the evening news. A curvy newswoman was standing outside the Miracle City Prison, covering the latest and most unnerving story of the day.

"Alejandra Marengo a.k.a. La Cortina, the supervillain that held Miracle City captive less than forty-two hours ago has escaped with the aid of the Titanium Titan." The camera moved to the side of the anchorwoman and zoomed in on the maximum security prison. "Details are sketchy about the escape but Police Chief Suárez urges the residence to stay calm yet alert for these two highly dangerous criminals."

Then the news shifted to various superheroes patrolling the city for the two fugitives.

"Miracle City's own superheroes swear that they will not rest until La Cortina and the Titanium Titan are found. Odds are stacked high against them since there has been no sign of the two supervillains since their daring escape." The newscaster went on. "If anyone knows of the whereabouts or has seen the Titanium Titan or La Cortina, they are urged to come forward to help put these two criminals behind bars."

Rodolfo turned down the volume on the television and looked over his family.

"This is troublesome." He voiced gravely. "I knew bars would not slow down Alejandra. She's too powerful and she has an alliance with the Titanium Titan."

That sent shivers of fear and nausea through the room.

"This means that we are still at risk for another attack. We barely survived our last fight with La Cortina and the Titan! We cannot take another battle; not _this_ soon." Rodolfo started pacing.

"Easy, mi hijo." Grandpapi gestured calmly. "Something tells me dat another attack is not coming for a long time."

Manny hopped off of the couch and wobbled over to his pacing father.

"Yeah dad. Alejandra's so weak, she's probably still picking out guacamole from her hair." The teen snickered. "And the Titan? This is the _Titan_ we're talking about! "Look! In the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's the Titanium Titan the super Booby!""

The thirteen-year-old hero crashed to the floor, laughing at his own joke. But then he winced at his tender arm and his laughter died down to giggles.

"But you gotta admit… it's _SOOOOO_ romantic! Two baddies, head-over-heels in love with each other stage an elaborate prison break only to run off together! A "the devil may care" scenario with a juicy twist of vendetta for those who did them wrong! _OOO_! Fun." Frida beamed, kicking her feet excitedly as she watched an image of Alejandra and the Titan's escape on the TV. The room went silent as everyone stared at her. "What?"

Manny scoffed and got up off of the floor.

"Gee Frida. Are you a girl or a sidekick?" He questioned, hand on his hip. Frida stuck her nose in the air.

"For _your_ information, I am both." She answered then looked back at the screen. "And they do make one sweet couple; a sweet, revolting yet very successful hero-butt-kicking couple. I'd be scared if I was you, dude."

"Um, YOU helped bring Alejandra down too! _Remember_?!" Manny gestured angrily. Frida stared off and gulped.

"Okay. I'm scared now." She shivered. "La Cortina and the Titan will get us, capture us and _lock us away for all eternity_!"

Rodolfo rolled his eyes and began walking toward the kitchen.

"Then it wouldn't matter, Frida. You two are still grounded from earlier on today... For all eternity." The superhero walked into the kitchen. Grandpapi gave the two teens a thumbs-up before he followed his son.

Manny and Frida snapped their fingers.

"It's not fair." The teen hero growled. The blue-haired rocker got off of her chair and walked up to her best friend.

"I know! The award ceremony TP prank was AWESOME! And the "fart noise heard around the world" was wicked cool too!" She folded her arms and cocked her hip. "Adults just don't have the same sophisticated taste in humor as we do."

Then the two friends laughed.

"Those were very good pranks, ya gotta admit." Manny snickered. Frida nodded.

"The next time we save the city, we need to get together a BETTER prank for the award ceremony! We need to keep out-doing ourselves!" Frida cheered. The teen hero glanced down at the metal around his neck.

Smirking, a devilish thought crossed Manny's mind.

"I think I'll wear this to school tomorrow and shove it up Vice-Principle Chacal's nose." He snickered and held up his metal. "This proves that I am a real hero! I am a real hero who will jump on any city-trashing monster whenever I want."

"Aw. See? You got your wish." Frida beamed but then grabbed her friend by the front of his shirt and yanked him to her face. "You make another wish like that again and I'll _HURT_ you."

Manny chuckled warily at his friend's intenseness.

"Relax, Frida. Let La Cortina and the Titanium Titan come. We beat them once and we'll beat them again!" Then the teen hero spun his belt buckle. In a flash of green glow, a tiger roar was heard. "They will have to tangle with El Tigre, his super-macho family and Frida Suárez! They have no chance!"

Giving another tiger roar, Manny Rivera made it clear who the protectors of Miracle City were. As the evening sun bathed this large city and pigeons flew to their dovecotes, Miracle City couldn't be in safer hands.

FIN

* * *

Well... That's it. CJzilla hoped it was as fun to read as it was to write. It's been fun kids and CJzilla parts with these last words: R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK AND ROLL! Oh and a sequal you ask?... Eh... Why not?


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